The Long Way Home
by TeatimeGeek
Summary: An attempt on Relena's life thrusts Heero into the public spotlight. With terrorism and regional unrest on the rise, Vice Foreign Minister Darlian and the Preventers must adapt quickly to the changing landscape, but how do you fight against an enemy who hides behind the banner of unity and peace?
1. Pax Romana

_The year is after colony 203. With peaceful relations successfully established between the earth and the space colonies, the Preventers, the military branch of the ESUN composed of elite ex-soldiers, is tasked with negotiating the systematic abolition of mobile suits and all other weapons of war._ _However, several earth nations have grown disenchanted with the new world government. With popular support of their people, the aspirations of these nations threaten to undermine the legitimacy of the ESUN, and the fragile state of peace that was so hard won._

* * *

.

For a moment, screams and gasps were all she could hear, and without opening her eyes Relena knew exactly who tackled her to the ground. She raised her head and assessed the situation, two meters from her, Heero had the guy pinned down in a painful wrist lock, the messenger bag lay in the doorway on the other side of the press hall, where Heero had flung it, undetonated.

The crowd, being journalists, snapped out of the stuper and cameras flashed angrily around the spectacle, casting strange shadows across Heero's face. Relena wanted to pause and take in the changes in his features since she'd last seen him, but this was hardly the appropriate time.

The man twisted his neck to face his captor, and ground out venomously, "Murderer...I'm taking you with me..." Heero frowned and held him down tighter, the captive grunted in pain, bit down hard on something in his mouth, and began to laugh.

"Shit!" Heero clamped a hand over the man's mouth and pinched the nostrils shut. "Call the Bio-Haz team!" He hissed into the comm at his collar and heard the agent scramble to obey at the other end of the line. The man pinned on the ground was convulsing, after a beat, he gave a final jerk of the body, and ceased all movement. Heero kept his hands firmly over the dead man's jaws, and glanced up to face a sea of flashing cameras.

* * *

.

"We caught one in the underground garage trying to plant a car bomb beneath the convoy driver's seat." Sally perched on the arm of the sofa in the Preventers office. "Shot herself in the mouth before we could I.D. her. You've got my body cam footage, she looked barely eighteen..."

Wufei growled, "Our target was so pathetic he didn't even know how to properly load the sniper rifle." It was as if he was personally insulted by the display of incompetence. "He jumped that roof in a hurry though, bastard was eager to die."

"They were clearly diversions from the main event inside the press hall. We're dealing with a group willing to kill their own people. Keep a tight lid on this until we know more." Une's voice crackled over the vidcom, encryption for their secure lines always made the transmissions low quality. "Heero, you'll be assigned to Ms. Darlian, we'll handle security for the State Minister."

"I don't work for you."

"Yes, but it lends you some credibility to the public if the Preventers can account for your presence." Une smiled diplomatically, she was obviously used to dealing with his type by now.

"Understood."

* * *

 _._

 _"Three attacks were thwarted by the Preventers this afternoon as Vice Foreign Minister Darlian made her diplomatic visit to the capital of Moldova. The Preventers spokesperson issued a statement following the incidents: [All three suspects died during apprehension. Their motives are unclear, and we have yet to determine whether the incidents are connected. So far no organization has taken credit.] We'll be following the investigation as more information is revealed..."_

* * *

.

Vice Foreign Minister Darlian was not amused. She wore her spare set of business attire, as the clothing she chose this morning were still being decontaminated. Her trip to Moldova was supposed to ease tensions between the Nationalist Independence Movement and the ESUN, but these _incidents_ have exasperated the already volatile situation. She scrunched her brows and reread a section of the security report, _all threats neutralized prior to activation_. There was something that bothered her about these attacks, aside from the timing...

"They were sacrifices."

She wasn't surprised at his sudden arrivals anymore, he always materialized when her world became turbulent. "Makes sense, our security resources are very limited here." She reasoned, they've done away with greetings long ago.

"The real threat was the chemical attack targeting you, the other two were just diversions to lull us into a false assumption that these were simple bomb threats." Heero walked around to her side of the desk, his voice was just as she remembered, commanding and low with that barely detectable tremor she loved so well. "The explosives in that bag were not wired to go off, preliminary report suggests the others were carrying duds, too."

He paused to let her mind work, and she appreciated his respect for her intellect. "But why suicide? What was the purpose of..." she trailed off with a shiver, "There's something we're not seeing, perhaps a contingency plan in case the chemical attack fails..."

"Correct." Heero touched her shoulder lightly, as if to reward her for reaching the right conclusion. "A cursory examination of their online social profiles link them to the Independence Movement."

"But you have doubts."

She became sharper over the years. Heero nodded affirmative. "The accounts were all recently created, dating back no older than two months, each with only a handful of affiliates. Furthermore, the alleged sniper had a troubling history of mental illness."

Relena frowned, "We can't stigmatize them like that..." She said reflexively.

"He was cognitively _deficient_ , Relena, he failed every aptitude test for employment, with no living relatives, the only thing he qualified for was government assisted living."

"It's impossible for a man like that to be a sniper!"

"Exactly." That was crude, but she needed a shock to the system.

"...You think someone groomed this poor man to fake an assassination, and then commit suicide?" She felt a headache looming behind her occipital bones. "This is far out conspiracy theory territory."

Of course, a Gundam pilot was no stranger to conspiracies.

"Isn't it possible," she tried to reason, "that he simply was someone who genuinely believed in the Independence cause...and just happened to be mentally deficient?"

"The rifle wasn't loaded, and he carried no ammo. He was wearing a headset, someone gave him the order to jump." Heero tapped a finger on her copy of the report. "Trowa's checking the car-bomb girl, but I'd wager she was also mentally disturbed, socially vulnerable, and won't be missed if she disappeared."

"That's terrible..." she sunk into her chair, her countenance sullen but for the spark of anger in her eyes. "What could be the purpose of such cruelty?"

"We don't know yet, but for the time being, I'm on guard duty." He gestured to his Preventers style buzz-cut, standard to all loaned out security personnel.

"Is that a good idea? The public perception of the Gundams aren't overly favourable right now..."

Heero's lips quirked at that, this girl always had more concern for him, even when she was the one being targeted.

There was one still unaccounted for, "What about the man you took down?"

"Nicolae Russu, he was a true-believer, but not a nationalist." Heero squinted at the memory, "It was more personal somehow..."

* * *

.

There was a distinct pattern to recent events that intrigued her, the tides were bringing in a new era and a Catalonia heiress must never be caught unawares during such a sea change.

Dorothy was not a woman easily distracted by petty politics, the pseudo-dramatics were a terrible bore. But Astro-turfing was an unexplored field of science, and this "Peace By Any Means" organization fascinated her. There was something incongruous about a group dedicated to peace, repeatedly committing acts of violence in the streets.

In the war-peace-revolution cycle, a constant pressure was present at every step—corruption. She could see the rot in the post-centennial peace, an over-ripe fruit ready to drop from the tree. Preparations must be made for a soft landing or the world would again fracture into warring pieces. For now, there was no need for her to jump into the arena, she'll be invited soon enough.

* * *

.

"Vice Foreign Minister, please understand! We are a peaceful nation, our people hold the philosophy of the Sanc Kingdom in the highest regard." The Prime Minister of Moldova was a short, balding man with cunning eyes and a compassionate voice that reminded Relena of her father.

"Nevertheless, the recent terror attacks-"

"How can your death be of any benefit to us? _Think_ , Miss Darlian, should anything befall ESUN delegates on our soil, let alone the beloved Former Queen, what would become of my small nation?"

Relena winced, the world would be out for blood. Moldova would face heavy economic sanctions, skyrocketing inflation, food and medicine would become unaffordable for the common people, and in all likelihood bankruptcy of the financial system which would lead to total loss of its sovereignty. Perhaps forced repatriation of the diaspora as well. That is, if they're not outright razed to the ground.

"We may be a country of peasants, but we are not stupid." The old man was getting worked up, "The entire country was designated as an agricultural region by the Alliance, and the ESUN changed nothing when it inherited the whole system. Our young people routinely emigrate to the colonies for better employment, leaving their little ones to be raised by grandparents. When these children grow up, they will leave, too." He looked across the conference table with shining eyes, "This is our last chance to preserve our nation. Our people will dwindle into nothing but a diaspora unless we can industrialize."

"Surely your booming ecological and cultural tourism is a net benefit to your GDP." Relena was grasping at straws and she could feel his indignation bubble up as she rushed to finish her statement. "The culture of this country is protected by several internationally recognized historical sites, not to mention the fifteen re-enactment villages and towns funded directly by ESUN grants."

She hit a nerve, the Prime Minister's mustache twitched with anger. "It's a disgrace to our people, that for money, we dress up and act like performing monkeys at the pleasure of tourists." He took a deep breath, "Let us live with dignity, and modernize to compete with the rest of the world."

The room fell quiet as Relena weighed the options. "The process to change an ecological-zoning designation can take years in the ESUN bureaucracy, and success can't be guaranteed."

"Then, Vice Foreign Minister, we the people of Moldova wish to begin official negotiations for secession from the Earth Sphere Unified Nation."

* * *

.

The motorcade was disguised as a taxicab with tinted windows, sandwiched between motorbikes. The streets of Chișinău were quiet for a capital city, curious children chased after them, grey heads of the elderly peeked warily from half closed windows.

These scenes have become familiar to Relena over the course of this tour, it was the same look of desperation she saw in Mongolia, in New South Yemen, in Caledonia... She swallowed a lump, and tried to imagine her own childhood without the strength of her father and the comfort of her mother.

"The cost of living can be prohibitive to raising a family in the colonies," Heero offered softly, "Most of these kids are better off here."

"A whole generation of children who can barely remember what a hug feels like from their mom and dad..." she tore her gaze away from the window. She would've broke down over this a few years ago, but the job required a clear head unclouded by emotions. "I should start on my report." She dug out her work mobile from her clutch.

Heero felt his own mobile buzz in its holster against his hip, pulled it out and slid it open in one fluid motion. A message from Trowa blinked at him, [leak, expect media smear, go under.]

This wasn't good, he could pass unnoticed as one of her rotation guards with his short hair and coloured lenses, but if he was singled out, there'd be many from his past who could put a name to his face. Then all they had to do was connect the dots until he was outed as a Gundam pilot.

"What is it?" Relena's hand hovered above her own device, temporarily forgotten.

He skimmed the rest of the message, the corners of his eyes tightened with tension. Heero turned his screen for her to see.

 _"He killed my father with his bare hands. The photos, see for yourself! My poor old tata...he was all I had, and this monster took him away from me_ _." The petite brunette wiped her tears as cameras flashed and reporters swarmed her podium, a black-suit security guy pushed them back._ The news footage ended, replaced by the text " _Yasmin Russu_ _seeks justice for father brutally killed by ESUN thug."_ Mournful piano slowed to a stop as the video faded to black.

The girl was a very sympathetic character, yes, Relena could feel the emotional tug of this media narrative. Which meant..."Heero, they want to eliminate _you_."

* * *

.

Tbc...


	2. False Realities

_The voice of the people expresses the mind of the people, and that mind is made up for it by those who understand the manipulation of public opinion. It is they who pull the wires which control the public mind and contrive new ways to guide the world._

 _-E. Bernays, 20th century propagandist._

* * *

.

Wufei sneered down from the one-way glass window at the small crowd of protesters, who slowly circled the lawn in front of the ESUN administration building, their movements lethargic in the autumn cold. " _Peace by Any Means?_ What does a bunch of low-energy crybabies know about what it takes to achieve peace?"

"If you think the placards are lame, wait till you hear their chants." Sally strode into their shared little office, put two steamy mugs of fresh brew on their communal desk, and threw herself into the cracked old pleather couch with a sigh. "I can't believe we fought a war so brats like them can skip classes at college."

Wufei's face darkened a shade as he recalled his own bookish naivety as a youth. Sally saw his expression and scoffed, "Those aren't little kids down there you know, some of them are almost thirty and haven't done an honest day's work in their whole lives."

"I know where empty idealism can lead." Wufei murmured and squinted at the smattering of cardigan-clad protesters who, having grown tired of marching in a circle, settled down on the grass to eat packed lunches. "Great, we'll have to clean up the trash after their picnic too...hey what's a news van doing here?"

Sally sprang up from the couch to join her partner at the window as the vehicle swerved up to the curb. The protesters also scrambled back into a loose marching circle, held up their signs and resumed their chants. Pieces of lunch wrap and juice boxes discarded in haste littered the lawn.

Sally pressed her forehead against the cold glass. "Typical. Half the world nations are caught between separatist and unionist street brawls, yet this little racket is what they want to print!"

* * *

 _._

 _"We are coming to you live in front of the Earth Sphere United Nations administrative building in Brussels, as you can see, thousands of people have assembled here to protest the brutal acts of the Preventer agent, which resulted in the death of an unarmed civilian yesterday." The reporter shouted into his handheld mic, gesturing wildly to the noisy crowd behind him. "Well let's hear it from their own words." He turned to point the mic at a placard._

Wait, did he say THOUSANDS? Une stared at her hand-held unit in disbelief, and ran to her window. She saw the roughly seventy protesters march below, and looked back at the screen in her hand still displaying the live newsfeed. And did he say UNARMED?!

 _The footage transitioned to a shot of the march, the tight camera angle obscured the size of the crowd. The chants were a little disorganized, but helpful subtitles scrolled across the bottom of the screen. [STONE COLD BUTCHER GO AWAY! PSYCHO KILLER MUST REPAY!]_

The dirty bastards, Une rubbed her temples, "I knew we should've invested in a PR specialist."

* * *

.

"Miss Darlian, you have to publicly distance yourself from this agent. My phone line is blowing up with calls demanding accountability for his violent actions!" State Minister Yacovitch was sweating in her beige pantsuit, for a woman of technically higher rank, she was nervous giving orders to Relena Darlian.

"Agent Yuy has displayed the utmost restraint and the minimum use of force in this incident," Relena tried to keep her voice level, "he also neutralized a chemical attack and saved the lives of forty three people, including my own."

"The press doesn't care about that, they're out for blood and the optics are terrible! That face of his in the photos, it's like he's a soulless machine-"

"MINISTER!" Relena hissed out, surprising herself. "We can't throw our colleague to the wolves because of 'bad optics' or whatever else counts for politics these days." She was livid, this conniving woman she looked up to in the past few years had now completely lost her respect.

Yacovitch wiped her upper lip with an already damp handkerchief and looked at Relena with resignation. "Politics is ALL optics Miss Darlian."

* * *

.

Heero ruminated over the most recent intel dump from Trowa as he trailed behind Relena. They headed for the Preventers HQ, which was three floors down and across a skywalk. Une called for a face to face, this was getting bigger than a petty PR headache for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Every major news outlet was pushing the same narrative, a cold-blooded Preventers agent had killed an unarmed civilian, who was in the independence movement and a peaceful protester. Heero was familiar with misinformation campaigns, but the current media was supposed to be decentralized...at least he thought it was. Other than himself and Relena, thirty two reporters, six cameramen, and three guards were in the press hall yesterday, how was it none of them came forth with the truth? Why was the supposed daughter of that terrorist given so much screen time? The people behind this had to be powerful enough to dictate the message, and remain hidden while controlling it. But why? To discredit Relena? The Preventers?

Not enough data and far too much noise. He'll have to wait for a chance to rub brains with Trowa, the soft-spoken man understood his thought process, asked only intelligent questions, and wouldn't be a distraction to him like Relena's presence. He peered at the back of her head, and calculated not for the first time the logistics of disappearing the both of them. The hardest part, he always knew, would be convincing her to come with him.

* * *

.

"I misjudged the situation in Moldova, we should not have withheld the information about the chemical attack from the public." Une addressed the two of them, "Several regional governments have asked us to withdraw our agents. Our reputation as peacekeepers is at risk, I'm afraid your official assignment ends here, Heero."

Relena could not believe that Lady Une of all people would dismiss him like that, but Heero put out a staying hand. "I don't actually work for you, so by all means, assign another agent to the Vice Foreign Minister." He nodded toward Relena, "I'm of more use out of the public eye anyway."

So Lady Une was doing this to protect Heero, Relena sat back, "The sooner he disappears from the limelight, the less questions will be raised about him."

"We're too late for that." Trowa appeared in the door, his eyes found Heero's, "Your identity was blown."

Heero shot up from his seat and growled, "By who?"

"It appeared three minutes ago in every publication almost simultaneously, I wasn't able to trace the source."

* * *

.

"Holy shit."

Hilde looked up from her breakfast, Duo was staring at his morning newsfeed with comically wide eyes, he was so focused that the toaster made him jump. She smiled and shook her head, "What's got you all worked up?"

"You remember that horrid photo of Heero from yesterday's papers?" Duo handed her his tablet.

 _[Face of a Killer - Gundam Pilot Revealed!]_

She frowned and swiped to the next article.

 _[Dead Men Tell No Tales of Gundam 01]_

"What are these people smoking?" She scrolled further.

 _[The Killers Among Us: Gundam Pilots]_

Hilde's heart sank, "Oh Duo...they're really gunning for him."

Duo shook his head, "No, they're coming after all of us."

* * *

.

Relena pursed her lips, was it a good idea to attend this month's parliamentary meeting? She always made a point to sit in on them, it helped her keep a pulse on relations between member states, though sometimes it was hard to tell genuine animosity from petty personal feuds of the MPs. She was preoccupied by Heero's situation, and sitting in a car for three hours made her more antsy. The ESUN Parliament, due to convoluted bureaucratic reasons and the clash of European egos, was held in Luxembourg as opposed to Brussels. Agent Creveld accompanied her on the drive this morning, he's been on her detail before.

"Please, call me Simeon," the older man had warmly shaken her hand when they were first introduced, "it's an honour to serve Your Majesty."

He used to be one of Zechs' men, he sheepishly explained later. "People join the Preventers for all kinds of reasons, I came here because this is the closest thing to serving my country." He was from the former Sanc Kingdom.

"Here we are." Simeon opened the car door. Relena snapped back to the present, and mentally steadied herself to listen to the MPs bicker till sundown.

* * *

.

He could sense a subdued excitement today in the crowd below, like the tremor in a horse's hindquarters before a race, it set him on edge. Over the years, Heero sat through many a dry parliament sessions. Perched in his favourite alcove and hidden by the cast shadow of the arch, it was the perfect sniper's nest. He had full view of the theater floor, as well as the balcony where non member-state officials such as Relena sat.

"Ladies and gentlemen, members of our esteemed institution. It has come to my attention that certain recent developments have engendered some mistrust toward the administration. I think it prudent to properly address your concerns here." The President announced from his position at the front of the assembly hall, his words streamed into the earpieces of representatives, translated to a multitude of languages in real time, "Many of you here represent nations who are deeply suspicious of international intelligence agencies as secretive as the Preventers."

Relena perked up from her notes, this was not on the agenda file she received for today, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. From the balcony, she scanned the assembly floor, and saw approving nods from some, while others wore looks of confusion and curiosity.

"I, too, have my doubts about an ex-OZ military commander controlling our security forces. Yet with the increasing threat of separatist uprisings around the globe, a force for good is needed to maintain our unity. Can we entrust this monumental task to an organization that does not answer to the parliament?" The President opened his hands in a grand gesture, "How can they be held accountable to the people when they have free reign to hire any psychopath they wish?"

"Boo"s rose up from all around the assembly, the President nodded and continued when they quieted down. "Isn't it time for us to call forth brave soldiers from every nation, who are not tainted by the dangerous ideologies of the Preventers, but are ordinary men and women like you and I who just want peace?"

Assenting voices echoed around the large chamber, the President went on eagerly, "I hereby put forward a directive for the formation of a new Earth Sphere United Nations Peacekeeping Army! All in favour vote AYE!"

* * *

.

"Simeon call the car! We're heading back to Brussels, immediately." Relena struggled through the heavy doors of the assembly theatre and rushed down the marbled hall to the exit, though Simeon had left the officers lounge after seeing the commotions on their closed circuit tv, he had to run to keep pace with her.

"It takes at least five minutes for our driver to clear the garage!" He tried to grab a hold of her, but she was already out the front gate, "Wait! Miss Relena!"

A horde of journalists waited on the one hundred steps that led up to the parliament building. It wouldn't surprise her if it was the President himself who tipped them off about the new directive. They swarmed toward her like a mutant multi-celled organism, instantly surrounding her with their bodies and equipment.

Simeon burst through the threshold seconds after Relena, and swore at what he saw.

"Vice Foreign Minister! Is it true that you have a private relationship with the Gundam pilots?" One if the press-pass holders shouted at her.

"What's your response to the allegations of fraternization with pilot 01?!"

"What?" Relena was trying to break through the crowd by pushing forward down the steps, Simeon had rounded to the bottom of the stairs, and was shoving people aside to get to his charge.

"Miss Darlian! How do you justify your involvement with war criminals?"

Was the press trying to make her angry? Her father had faced ridiculous questions in his time, but this was all ad hominem.

She finally pushed past the last of the clamouring crowd and reached Simeon, the two of them raced down the steps as a black van rolled up to meet them, its rear sliding door already open. The driver-side window was down, an Asian man with jet black hair and a Preventers jacket called out, "Get in!"

It was Heero's voice, but the man's features were far more mongoloid. "Who are you?" She heard Simeon ask, and blinked. She grabbed her bodyguard and lunged into the idling vehicle. As soon as they were inside, the van revved out of the parliamentary grounds and onto the open streets of the northern quarter of Luxembourg, Relena squeezed her eyes shut and fought the urge to hurl from the motion sickness.

"Where's our driver?" Simeon yelled towards the front as he hurriedly slid the door closed. The two passengers rearranged themselves in the cab so that Relena was strapped into the seat directly behind the driver.

"The press vehicles blocked the south exit of the garage, his car couldn't make it out in time to get you away from that ambush." Heero glanced back into the cab, Relena caught the slightest glint of cosmetic tape at his temple, which pulled the corner of his eye up and out.

"...Agent Yuy?" Simeon stared at him openly.

Relena allowed herself a brief smile, yes, this was a much more convincing disguise than her brother's mask. She returned to the problem at hand, "A proposal like that had to be deliberated and vetted by the judicial committee, the President has been planning this for a while, with considerable backing from the judicial branch, too."

"It's possible he's just taking advantage of a bad situation, but more likely he's part of a bigger conspiracy." Heero kept his eyes on the road, only allowing himself quick glances through the rear view mirror. "Either way this is a power-grab." He retrieved a mobile from the cargo pocket on his thigh, and threw it at her over his shoulder. "All communication from now on goes through that secure unit. Only call Une, me or the others."

She caught it with both her hands and regarded the hefty little device, and knew that he was only referring to the other pilots, and the handful of reliable allies from the Peacemillion crew. "Trust gets you killed." He once said to her, "And love gets you hurt," she replied stubbornly, "but that's not gonna stop me." They were just kids back then, battle-weary yet full of idealism.

"Miss Relena, are they trying to start another war?" Simeon's gaze held fear and excitement, his soldierly senses were waking up.

"Someone is stoking division amongst the member states," she sucked on her lip and thought out loud, "but war is not the endgame. By the looks of it, the goal is a new Alliance."

* * *

.

"I've recalled all field agents, except those engaged in covert ops." Une addressed the Preventers core-staff assembled in the bullpen, ten trainees, two instructors, twelve intel officers, two clerks, and several field agents who were between assignments. She always ran a lean ship, the budget for the Preventers was not extravagant.

"Our top priority now is to get our people home before the decommission order comes down the pike, we won't leave any man stranded out there." She paused to look at each member of her team, when she saw not fear, but only alertness, she continued, "When we get the order, be prepared to go Code Grey."

All these years she had insisted that the Preventers was not a military organization, but at this moment Une was seized by old sentiment, she clicked her heel and saluted. "It's been an honour to serve with you."

* * *

.

Heero dropped them off in an underground parking lot on the outskirts of Brussels, they switched cars, and Simeon drove Relena back to her office at the ESUN admin building.

Before she climbed into the second car, Heero took hold of her wrist, "Be careful, we don't know who's involved." His eyes and brows strained against his disguise, "Creveld is a good agent, but he can't protect you officially if the Preventers are deposed."

"They can't draft an army in one day, and parliament is still in session for another 5 hours." She rubbed his outstretched arm reassuringly, "I'll find out what I can about who opposed the directive, they may be valuable allies."

"Don't count on it, get in, grab what you need, get out."

The ESUN building had its usual air of quiet efficiency as she made her way across the vast high-ceiling lobby. It was amazing how a world-changing event can take place, yet everything still looked absolutely serene. The elevator ride was oppressively silent, Simeon wordlessly placed himself between her and the door. He didn't say anything but Relena could tell he wasn't impressed by her rash behaviour at the parliament building.

The atmosphere in the office of Foreign Affaires was icy. Clerks and administrators avoided eye contact with her as she walked through the cubicles, her private office was at the far end, beside the office of the State Minister.

"Hey Relena?" Yacovitch poked her head out from her office, "Can I see you in here for a minute?"

"I need to upload the reports on my desk console, be right with you." Relena motioned to open her own office door.

"Right now, Miss Darlian."

"...Alright." Relena followed the older woman with a frown.

Simeon hovered outside, nodded to the agent assigned to the State Minister. "Owen was it?" Simeon extended his hand.

"Yes sir." Owen shook his hand, bright eyed and solemn, "Class of 203."

Simeon grinned, they sent a rookie to guard the old bat, she probably wasn't even in any danger and Une was merely fulfilling a technicality.

"The boys are gonna grab a drink at the old watering hole after this shift, you wanna join us sir?"Owen tapped his belt buckle twice. Urgent updates, coded.

"I haven't been in ages, what're they serving these days?" What's the situation?

"Bar's fully stocked...though I highly recommend their home brew, only takes two pints to get the big lads wasted." Shit, they'd been decommissioned, so much for getting paid this week.

"No thanks, I'll stick to a nice bottle of the dark stuff." Simeon clapped the younger agent amicably on the shoulder, this day just keeps getting more interesting.

"I'm worried about you, Relena." The State Minister leant over the desk, a mask of concern, "You're dragging your reputation through the mud for these Preventer guys, and for what?"

Relena bristled, did this woman really believe she would fall for such obvious gaslighting?

"I've worked in government all my life, trust me, a few bodyguards are not worth your career." Yacovitch carried on, "Besides, I hear President Davos was successful at commissioning the ESUN army, soon we won't need the Preventers anymore."

She was either incredibly naive, or a mere cog in the wheel, and Relena didn't believe in naive politicians. "I'm afraid I've grown rather attached to my details over the years, they're more friends than employees."

"You should be careful who you call friends, Relena." Yacovitch's condescending maternal air made Relena recoil, the ESUN bureaucracy attracted the worst narcissists, always posturing dominance hidden behind advice. "Especially with your connection to that genocidal brother."

Where did that come from? "Minister, why dredge up a dead man's folly?" Milliardo was presumed diseased on the official records.

"I'm just watching out for you, my dear, there are rumours about him hiding in some remote colony, alive and well, fomenting his next little rebellion."

* * *

.

Tbc...


	3. The Noble Lie

_The soldier above all other people prays for peace, for they must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war._

 _-G. K. Chesterton, 18th-century journalist._

* * *

.

Heero leaned his body to make the turn onto a discreet side road, the ride got bumpy where it unceremoniously became unpaved. He snaked his motorbike around a series of high berms and bramble-covered old fences, coming to a stop at the edge of a wide pasture. Dismounted, he pushed the bike across the paddocks toward a picturesque red barn, alfalfa bobbed around him. One of the barn doors was half open, looked like he wasn't the first to arrive at the rendezvous.

"They're planning a hit piece on the Princess, too." Trowa greeted him, jumping down from the high beam and opened the door wider for Heero to come in with his bike.

"We'll be losing our only advocate in the public sphere." Heero kicked the stand and hung his helmet on the handlebar. "She was the logical next target."

"I could take down their servers, but the Preventers would look even more guilty."

Heero clenched his right hand, "How many media corporations?"

"All the ones that matter."

"Any outliers?"

"Several feeds out of the Bantu Confederation, and a handful of state mouthpieces from the Eastern Mediterranean region are questioning the narrative, but they have their own motives in local politics." Trowa punched his access code into a keypad hidden behind an electric panel. There was a click in the floor as a slab of concrete sunk to reveal a staircase.

Heero followed the taller man down the steps, the air dry and warm as they descended. Trowa's voice echoed off the walls in the dark.

"There have been police reports of targeted bombings against unionist organizations in Southern Kurdistan, Urumqi, and Colombia." The bottom of the stairwell had an arched ceiling, with loading dock stairs further in that led up to an old-school vault door a meter or so off the floor.

"Has anyone claimed responsibility?"

"It'll be assumed that the separatists committed the attacks, and that's all the incitement the unionists need to retaliate in kind." Trowa opened the vault and switched on the power, a bullpen that mirrored the Preventers HQ flickered into view. "None of these activities are covered by the media, this is going to psychologically isolate both sides." He claimed a console and turned on the unit.

Following suit, Heero powered up the adjacent machine. "Global unrest would legitimize militarizing the ESUN."

"I can't see the colonies swallowing this without a fight."

"No, but most third-generation colonists are weak-minded, they were easily tricked by OZ, it won't take much to persuade them into subjugation this time, either." The console screen lit up, Heero typed in his I.D. and passcode. "I'll put some feelers out in the public forums."

"By the way," Trowa paused typing and glanced over, "I have the forensic photos from the chemical attack, should we release them into the wild?"

Heero hesitated a breath, "Do what you must."

* * *

.

"Following the decision of the ESUN Parliament, we shall comply with the will of the assembly. The Preventers organization is dissolved, effective immediately." Lady Une stood against the blinding camera flashes and spoke without flinching. "I have relinquished jurisdiction of the Preventers headquarters to the Bureau of Public Inquiry, including all documents and data collected during the tenure of our service."

The room erupted as journalists shouted over each other, all pretense of orderly conduct evaporated.

"Commander Une! Does this mark the end of the militaristic legacy of OZ?"

"Will you give up the Gundam pilot to be tried in the International Court?"

"Are you grooming Treize's daughter to carry out her father's ambitions? Lady Une!"

She spun around with an icy glare, they dare bring her child into this farce. Une put on her best diplomatic smile, "Mister Treize loved the human spirit, and I've worked every day with the Preventers to achieve peace in honour of his memory."

They weren't going to get another word out of her for their rags, she decided, no more questions.

* * *

.

"You have a family back in Sanc, go home and lay low." Agent Yuy said while Relena hugged Simeon farewell.

"Let me stay and help," Simeon said earnestly.

"You can help by finding out if your people will rally behind Relena." Heero commanded.

A wave of longing swelled up in Simeon's chest, he pushed it back down and gazed wistfully at Relena, "Will you return to us? Shall our homeland be a sovereign kingdom once again?"

Relena looked at Heero sharply, she had no plans to return to the Sanc Kingdom, what was he doing?

"It's just reconnaissance, Agent Creveld, don't stir up trouble," Heero answered briskly and walked away without a second glance, pulling Relena after him.

Simeon sat in the idling car and watched Yuy and Miss Relena disappear into the roadside foliage. If that man truly was the pilot of 01, then she was in good hands. If even half the rumours about him were true, the ability and loyalty of that man were fearsome indeed.

Just reconnaissance? Yeah right. Simeon tightened his grip on the steering wheel and stepped hard on the gas, heart pounding. When the Princess finally came home, he'd make sure the people were primed to receive her.

* * *

.

Relena sighed and wiped away the day's makeup, the stillness of being underground contrasted violently with the past days' events. The silence pressed on her eardrums, it always felt like this in a subterranean structure. Her own apartment was inaccessible due to the press encampment around it. No doubt they were ready to pounce with questions meant to defame her.

Outside the small lavatory, the door to her assigned quarters opened and clicked shut softly.

"There's been no sighting of Zechs in the colonies' surveillance, I'll check resource satellites next but communication with them is on a delay." Heero plugged an ether cable to his handheld, they were to use no wireless tech at the base. "The sub-web chatter was a dead end, too." He sat at the foot of one of the two cots and unfolded a keyboard. "But Zechs and Noin are logged for leisure leave for the week, according to the latest roster from Mars."

She stood by the bathroom door and studied Heero, he appeared fatigued, his mouth pressed into a thin line, left hand idly massaging the base of his right thumb. Spasms intermittently seized that right hand, and the muscles at his jaw would tighten. She thought back to their conversation in her office suite in Moldova, when he had touched her on the shoulder with his left hand. Then earlier today, when he grabbed her wrist in the garage, also with his non-dominant hand.

"This is probably the next line of personal attack..." He trailed off and eyed her wearily as Relena crossed the room and knelt beside him. With choreographed intent, as if to not startle a stray animal, she slowly reached for his clenched fist and pulled it into her lap. Her hands massaged his until the tightly coiled digits relented and opened, revealing his calloused palm, scrubbed an angry red and hot to the touch.

Heero yanked his hand out of her grasp, never meeting her eyes, his short-cropped hair left him exposed, it was easier when he had bangs to hide behind.

"Were you hurt?"

"Hurt? No." Heero said with a bitter twist of his lips and tucked his hand away as if he was ashamed, as if he was...dirty.

Memories of the press hall evacuation rushed back into her mind, figures in neon-yellow plastic suits whisking her away, faces obscured by reflective helmets. She looked back, hoping to catch a glimpse of Heero again before they sealed off the room, if only to reassure herself. The bio-haz team bustled around him, a respirator was being strapped over his nose and mouth. There amidst the chaos, Heero knelt unmoving, hand still pressed tightly over the dead man's face.

"Oh Heero..." She hadn't seen him like this since the war. Suddenly she was angry, angry that he had to bear the guilt of another death, angry at the people who put that self-loathing, cynical expression on Heero's face. Sensing the change in her, he looked up in alarm.

"No more." Relena stood, "I'm done reacting."

"What do you have in mind?"

"First, I'm calling in a favour," She started for the exit, "from Dorothy Catalonia."

* * *

 _._

 _"Can we really live in peace and safety when those mass murderers are on the lose?" One of the hosts asked in feigned horror, a glossy, manicured hand clutched at her necklace._

 _Another host beside her nodded his head enthusiastically, fidgeting with his thick-rimmed glasses, he piped in, "You know Bev, I think you're absolutely right, absolutely right! We all want peace, but no one can be safe until these killers are behind bars."_

 _"They think they're above the law, but we'll bring them to justice." A third, austere woman spoke up, her tight curls pulled into a no-nonsense bun, "The Gundam pilots should stand trial for their war crimes."_

 _"But the colonies are clearly harbouring these terrorists, we don't even know their identities, how can they be apprehended?"_

 _"If the Colonies truly want peace, they'll deliver the killers-."_

"Oh for Pete's sake turn that trash off Duo!" Hilde stood between him and the screen.

"Have a little sympathy for a wanted man." Duo groaned, "They're targeting the Colonies again, you could almost hear their threats."

Hilde tilted her head, "Come with me."

They wove through service roads toward the commercial block, a faint commotion grew louder as they approached. Duo peered out from a narrow alleyway, a large crowd filled the city square, kettled-in by police barricades.

"They're protesting the ESUN militarization," Hilde said from behind him.

"How did I not hear about this?" Duo ducked back behind the building.

She gave him a long-suffering head shake, "If you spared a moment from your network news binge, and check the L2 forums instead..."

"Liars! Go back to earth!" Someone shouted and the crowd erupted in jeers, Duo poked his head out again. A small group of business-clad news anchors and pundits emerged from the diplomatic hotel, they scuttled off to a spaceport limo, their path fenced off from the protesters.

"Get off our colony!"

"Neo-Alliance pigs!"

"We love the Gundams!"

"Can't fool us twice you dirty windbags!"

A grown man mustn't cry, Duo wiped his eyes. Hilde gave him a few sympathetic pats, "You won't have to fight alone this time." She showed him her handheld screen. "People are speaking up on every habitat in the L2 cluster."

"We have to keep these protests peaceful, or the networks will use it against the Colonies." Duo took one last look at the scene, the limousine drove away as the crowd cheered. He grinned and kissed Hilde squarely on the lips, "I gotta go see an old friend."

* * *

.

"With her connections in Romefeller, Dorothy can give us some insights on who's stirring the pot and for what purpose." Trowa observed mildly from his console, seemingly pleased with Relena's idea.

"But precisely because of these connections, we also don't know where her loyalties lie." Heero wasn't as convinced, was Trowa withholding something? He chewed on his field ration and peered curiously at the other man from the corner of his eye.

"I don't trust that woman." Wufei was reassembling his sidearm, its components laid out neatly on the ready-table.

"You don't trust any woman." Sally casually leaned on his shoulder.

"I trust _you_." He pouted and took a bite out of the MRE she offered.

"Quit flirting, the line's open." Une motioned for them to gather around.

Relena waited for the video feed to stabilize. "Hello, Dorothy. Is this call secure?"

"Of course, Miss Relena, This is my personal encrypted line." The familiar, perennially smug face of Dorothy Catalonia lit up the screen. "What took you so long?"

Relena frowned, "This is only a two-day old situation."

"On the contrary, it's been over a month since your Parliament bought off the so-called watchdogs."

"Bill 2073." Une sat back and shook her head, _Independent Media Act_ , ostensibly to guarantee the viability of media companies by bailing them out with ESUN grants, several networks were on the brink of bankruptcy due to diminished viewership.

"He who pays the piper calls the tune. I hoped you'd be on your guard sooner, Miss Relena."

"I'm ashamed to admit that the secessionist movements had me thoroughly distracted." Relena sighed, Dorothy was right.

"Yes, you thought you could charm them back into the ESUN, so you went on a merry little world tour."

"That's not helping, Catalonia." Even Wufei thought that was unfair, this woman grated on his nerves something fierce.

"I do wish you'd have warned us," Relena said reasonably, everyone in this hideout was on edge and Dorothy was fuel to the fire. "But as it stands, we need a way out of this mess without things escalating to war."

"If I warned you, you'll rely on me." Dorothy turned serious. "You need to be strong to lead the world to peace, and to be strong you must be tempered."

"Tempered? This isn't some game-"

"All great heroes are tested and tried." Dorothy recited as if from an ancient creed. "I am going to help you, but you must grow wiser, also. This is a cold war before real combat, we must win it to avoid bloodshed."

"That's my wish as well, people have been put through enough hardship by the Eve Wars, another generation shouldn't have to grow up as we did."

"Then take a stand for those you wish to protect."

"That's what I've been doing for the past seven years." Relena was exasperated, even her patience had limits.

"You've been protecting a faceless abstraction, that's hardly going to arrest the imaginations of your adoring fans."

"Playing politics at a time like this..."

"Has your time in the bureaucracy made you so timid?" Dorothy propped her chin on folded wrists and squinted in a feline fashion. "The Relena Peacecraft I knew would've publicly defended her paladin the moment his honour was sullied."

Relena swallowed and looked back at Heero, who closed his eyes but said nothing. Had she really changed for the worse? The thought of herself becoming someone as spineless as Yacovitch made her sick in the stomach.

"Well, that seemed to do the trick." Dorothy leaned in close to her device, her face looming over the whole screen. "I may betray allies with sweet talk, but you are a friend, and deserve the bitter truth."

"Thank you, Dorothy, I always appreciate your honesty."

"Glad to be of service," Dorothy bowed her head in a mock curtsy. "I'll leave you with one rule: never, ever talk to the media."

* * *

 _._

 _"The ESUN press core was forced to evacuate from the L2 Colony Cluster due to threats to their personal safety, our team on the ground received unprecedented levels of xenophobic abuse from the colonists. Many have taken to the streets in violent mobs, one reporter described the scene as 'terrifying.'"_

"They're lyin' through their teeth," Duo slammed his fist on the cushioned arm of his chair, "The protest had nothing to do with _xenophobia._ "

"Network media has lost all credibility in the colonies." Quatre mused much more calmly, stroking his neatly trimmed beard, he looked every bit the respectable businessman. "The public forums are buzzing with colonists who are angry about the misrepresentation, especially on the anonymous boards."

Duo stood and walked to the floor-length windows that made up an entire wall in Quatre's office lounge, it offered a breathtaking night view of the colony from this height. "The media still holds sway on Earth though, this is gonna cause a rift between Earth and Space all over again."

"You underestimate the people of Earth, Duo." Quatre poured a steaming cup of tea and offered it to his friend, "Sorry it's only tea, I'm getting too old for coffee after eight P.M.."

"Underestimate? I love ya man, but this sounds like your _Mister Optimist_ side talkin'."

"Many of the miners I employ are from Earth, do you think they don't tell their families back home what's really going on up here?" Quatre blew on his own cup of hot tea to cool it. "The Earth and the Colonies were never truly isolated from each other, there are many stories of OZ soldiers who defected from Romefeller because they have families in the Colonies."

"Yeah but that still didn't stop the takeover-"

"Quatre!" A redheaded girl burst into the office, panting as she stumbled the last few steps toward them, "The Earth is posturing to invade...I sent you the brief." She pointed to his tablet and gulped air.

"You're not supposed to be up late, and you know how I feel about hyperboles." Quatre chided her and switched on the device, reading the contents while he ran a hand through his sandy hair. He wrinkled his brows, handing it over to Duo. "We were always going to be a liability to the Colonies."

Duo quickly scanned the page, and paced away from the window to plop down on the wingback chair, "Extraditions?" He drummed an agitated rhythm on the tablet. "Ugh this is such a hassle, let's just turn ourselves in."

"Absolutely not." The girl spoke up, "You are symbols of freedom for Outer Space. If you give up, the Colonies will give up, too. All before the fight has even begun."

Duo squinted at her, shoulder-length ginger hair, the confident and defiant way she carried herself. "...Mariemaia?"

"Who else?" She brushed him off impatiently, "Right now the ESUN can only issue empty threats, it'll take them a while to gather enough public support, and even longer to actually mobilize."

Duo blinked at her, looked over to Quatre and back, "What are you doing out here on MO-VI?"

"My foster mother sent me to study diplomacy under Quatre."

"Diplomacy. Right." It took Duo a few seconds to adjust his mental image of the little girl to this young woman in front of him.

Mariemaia snapped her fingers at him, "Focus, will you? The ESUN plan on using you as an excuse to send an occupying force to space!"

"Well it's not like we can just suit up and fight like we used to," Duo shrugged helplessly, "The Colonies are defenceless against military advances."

"Not necessarily," Quatre interjected, "We don't have any armaments per se, but the industrial colonies possess enough heavy-duty exoskeletons to fend off any conventional invasion." His countenance darkened, "And any ESUN official worth his salt should be wary of the original Operation Meteor."

* * *

.

Tbc...


	4. Press for Surrender

_As more exposed to suffering and distress; thence, also, more alive to tenderness._

 _-W. Wordsworth, 18th Century English Poet_

* * *

.

"Disclose my missions?" Heero's voice cracked at the incredulous idea.

"Yes, it's our best chance to take control of the narrative." Relena said. "We're already the target of gossip anyway, it won't be hard to shift the tone."

"She's got a point," Wufei piped up from his console, "You have to take the risk if you want to win, and in today's world of mass communication, the side with the best story wins."

"How many of your missions are _you_ willing to make public?" Heero snarled.

"I'm not allowed to engage with the public, Une can't handle that many PR disasters." Wufei somehow looked smug about this admission. Heero was in no mood for his snark.

"Look, the press portrayed you as a cold-blooded killing machine, we just need to change that perception and show them the real Heero Yuy." Relena pleaded, the bullpen fell silent.

"They're right." Heero ground out, and stalked towards the sleeping quarters with hunched shoulders, disappearing into the dim connection tunnel.

Relena looked around at the others, who avoided eye contact with her. Sally took pity, "Cold-blooded killing machine is kind of his reputation."

"That's not how I see him." Relena turned to follow after Heero.

She found him in their assigned room, their friends were never known for their subtlety. Light peeked out from the crack under the lavatory door, the tap inside ran for a long time. Was he delaying the inevitable confrontation? If he didn't want Relena's company he would have engaged the unit lock. The image of Heero Yuy hiding in a bathroom was too preposterous for her sleepy brain to process. Then again, he'd been increasingly temperamental ever since Moldova.

Relena sat on one of the cots and didn't bother to turn on the light, opting to wait for him in the comfort of the gloom. Her mind turned to her work schedule for the next morning. How deep was the rot in the ESUN? She wrested control of Romefeller from the iron grips of Duke Dermail, could she do it again? Were there still enough people with integrity left in the ESUN to support her efforts?

The water shut off abruptly, Relena snapped out of her pondering. Heero emerged in the doorway back-lit by the harsh light of the bathroom, reminiscent of an extra-terrestrial disembarking a spaceship for first contact. Relena came close to him and looked up into his bloodshot eyes, "Tell me what's wrong."

"It won't wash off." He said in quiet desperation, opening his hand for her to see, it was pink and pruney from over hydration, though she was relieved to find no sign of self harm.

Relena took his trembling hand, "You didn't kill that man Heero, the instant he released the poison his life was forfeit. What you did that day saved many lives."

"According to the literature, psychological effects of a close-range kill is vastly different from a kill in a mobile suit, or a sniper shot." He recited robotically, eyes unfocused.

"You didn't kill him."

"I know, but he was struggling to breath and I held his mouth and nose shut, it took him two whole minutes to die. I can still feel... his muscles went limp all at once."

Relena would have to bypass his conscious mind, his brain knew the facts, but his body still reacted as if he was responsible for the man's death. She plugged the drain and turned the tap on cold, the sink filled up. "Close your eyes." She commanded.

Heero obeyed, and felt her guide his hand into the cold pool of water. His skin tingled against the near-freezing temperature.

"It takes a clean hand to purify a tainted one." Relena's voice hovered beside him, her fingertips rubbed at his palm, the water gurgled as she systematically went from his thumb to pinkie. Her ministrations continued until he relaxed, then he heard the plug being pulled, and as the water level fell, so drained away his guilt.

Relena dried his hand with a towel and cupped it around her cheek, her warmth seeped into his palm. Swaying a little, he opened his eyes to see her staring back at him.

"You've not slept since the Moldova incident, most people would be hallucinating by now." She chastened gently, leading him to the nearest cot. "You're in no condition to make decisions. We'll discuss our next steps when you've had time to rest."

As she lay on her own side of the room, listening to his muffled breaths in the dark and the occasional twitches that signaled his descent into non-REM sleep, Relena mouthed a short and familiar prayer for him.

In the early morning hours, Heero resurfaced into a shallow state of sleep. Like a wardog, he hunted in dreams.

* * *

.

"I connected numerous events in the past three years, each a paving stone for the current state of the ESUN." Trowa's fingers flew on his keyboard ecstatically, jittery from the caffeine intake, "We've seen quite a few new MPs in the last parliamentary election."

"Yeah I remember, they were a big deal because of their supposed humble origins." Wufei side-eyed the soggy paper cup on Trowa's desk, how many refills did the man have tonight?

"Upon closer inspection, they've all been propped up by an international network of nonprofits through scholarships, grants, and endorsements." Trowa tapped the screen to indicate the connections.

Wufei squinted at the wall of text. "One World Society, Wide Rhodes Foundation, New Democracy, Open Gates..."

"These do sound familiar now that you mention it," Sally scooted closer, back-straddling an office chair. "Didn't a Romefeller spokeswoman openly oppose these candidates? It caused an uproar with the public."

"What better way to engender the electorates' affection than being named the enemy of the rich and powerful? By the previous oppressive regime no less." Wufei looked to Trowa for confirmation.

Trowa nodded, "Especially since all these non-profits trace back to Romefeller, but the money was washed through at least two layers of charitable organizations."

"That's how they bought the votes for Parliament huh..." Une, who was resting her eyes, sat up, "Go further back, check the Justices."

"Already have, they're bankrolled by the same organizations as the MPs, free vacations, speaking fees, even got a bridge named after one of them." Trowa reached for his coffee, found the cup empty, and got up to make a new pot. "It's a total buyout."

Wufei pushed his glasses up and rubbed his eyes, "Were we asleep at the wheel or what?"

"We focused on local conflicts, many are alive today because of us. I don't regret our choices." Une said steadfastly, a good commander never let her people shoulder the blame. Her crew visibly relaxed a little.

After a pause, Trowa poured himself a fresh cup and picked up where he left off, "Then just last week, an article hidden inside the budget omnibus bill passed without a hitch, allowing the deployment of foreign police to control civil dissent anywhere in the world."

"This is how Davos recruits for his army." Une held out her mug, Trowa filled it as a matter of course.

Wufei grumbled under his breath, "Let's just off the bastard."

"Government by assassination is not a viable option. Besides," Sally cautioned, "He's only a puppet anyway."

Trowa scrolled through his data pad, "Oh, this'll be of interest to you two." He gestured at Sally and Wufei, "Remember that group of protesters at HQ?"

"What of them?" Wufei peered over the rim of his glasses.

"Despite their dismal turn-outs, they've been really effective at making changes on the legislative level."

"An astroturf movement?" Sally remembered the haphazard crowd with their glossy, professionally printed signs and media presence.

Wufei frowned, "Why would this be of interest to me and Sally?"

"Because you're going undercover," Une said, it'd better come from her than Trowa, "Infiltrate _Peace By Any Means_."

"What? Why us?" Wufei balked at the thought of blending in with that mob of drones, "Can't you go, Trowa? You're better at the deception game."

Trowa sipped his coffee serenely, "Your voice is more suited for protesting."

* * *

.

Relena settled in a seat between the Moldovan MP and representatives from the Kurdish Region. She regarded each of the MPs at the round table solemnly, more than fifty have shown up, they had to commandeer a bigger hall than the one she booked. The room quieted in anticipation.

"Thank you all for attending this meeting on such short notice, I'm sure you're eager to begin the discussion and have your concerns addressed."

"We appreciate you acknowledging us," one of the Mozambican representatives spoke slowly in English, "Our region has experienced a dangerous change in recent months and we are at a loss for a solution."

"Alright, please go ahead." Relena opened her data pad for notes, but respectfully kept her eyes on the MP.

"Since the withdrawal of the Preventers arbitration team, my district fell back into rioting." The MP wrung her hands nervously, "Our natives do not trust the Chinese aid workers assigned by the ESUN."

Relena was familiar with the project, contractors from China were sent to Mozambique to help with reconstruction after the Eve Wars.

"These workers brought extended families, purchased large swaths of real estate, and built permanent enclaves on our ancestral land." Another MP cut in, he was bolder than his peer, "Our people are being priced out of their own homes, racial tensions are high in the capital, many see this as colonization."

Alarms went off in Relena's head, "Did you request a new mitigation team?"

"We sent many urgent petitions but no ministry has responded." The first MP slumped in defeat, but her colleague stood up and fumed, "What's the point of the Union if you're just going to ignore the members?"

Relena winced inwardly, the ESUN was a mammoth bureaucracy mired in endless meetings, slow to respond and quick to dismiss. Now without the Preventers this was going to be even harder. "I don't have the resources nor the authority to resolve this conflict here, but I promise to bring this to the attention of the Presidential Council this afternoon."

The Mozambican representatives conferred briefly with each other and sat back, politely motioning for the others to voice their concerns. By the time they went around the table, Relena felt worn down by so many issues raised. How did she ever think visiting each country was going to help these people?

* * *

.

Mariemaia draped a damp towel around her neck, "Quatre just launched the last geosync satellite, they're making final adjustments to the solar panels" She said to the vidcom, toothbrush dangling from her mouth.

"Good, I don't know how long communications will remain open on earth." Une's voice crackled in reply.

"Long enough to allow an overlap while we bring the satellites online, at the very least, transmissions between the Colonies will be guaranteed."

"I just hope it's not too late, we have fewer and fewer allies in the ESUN, and they're escalating." Une looked at her daughter and longed to have her near, but it was no safer on Earth than with Quatre.

"Oh! Duo visited last night, our orbit is passing his cluster," The girl recalled, "Apparently L2 is not happy with Earth right now."

"Keep an eye on it for me, and stay out of trouble."

"Yes commander." Mariemaia mimed a salute with her toothbrush, dragging a smile out of Une. "Mom, you be careful too."

* * *

.

Dorothy stepped onto the landing deck, the artificial gravity of the docking bay always reminded her of the heaviness one felt climbing out of a pool, a sudden and cruel reminder of mass.

"Lady Catalonia," A passing engineer tipped his cap at her, "Back so soon?"

"Can't stay away from a handsome fella like you, Manus."

The burly man barked a laugh and moseyed off to do maintenance on her shuttle, shouting hellos at the pilot and crew, his thick Hungarian accent rung brightly in the bay. Dorothy smiled, she enjoyed the bustle of a resource satellite at the height of its production bell curve, her civilian shuttle dwarfed by the titanic industrial ships that lined the dock.

Someone touched her softly on the shoulder and she spun around to see Quatre take her hand, his beard tickled her skin as he bent to kiss it.

"People will see." Dorothy warned.

"Let them see."

She was more scrupulous, staying him with a palm on his chest when he leaned in, "People will talk."

"Let them talk."

"Your trust in your people is not entirely misplaced," Dorothy pinned him with her icy stare, "But even at the heart of our stronghold the walls have ears."

He was about to protest but decided against it at the last moment and backed off, smart boy, she smirked, "Besides, how would your friends feel if they found out through the grapevine instead of from your own lips?"

"Oh I think they'll get over it." Quatre offered her his arm, "Heero might appreciate a break from being the target of teasing."

* * *

.

"Why are the Colonies still hostile toward us? They're full members now with equal representation just like any country on Earth." The Minister of Culture looked at his colleagues in consternation, the council room was silent.

Relena frowned, did they really not see it? "The people of the Colonies are still wary of Earth's ambitions, and now the commission of the ESUN army-"

"Peacekeeping Force, our very own Blue Helmets." The President sat at the head of the long table, his deep set eyes watched her like a hawk.

"Regardless of its title, a military organization under direct control of the Presidential Council is going to antagonize a lot of people, especially those who are already skeptical of the intentions of the ESUN."

"You seem to hold a lot of sympathy for these... _skeptics_ , Miss Darlian."

"It's important to understand the motivations of all sides in a conflict, in order to come to a mutually satisfactory solution." Relena bared her hands imploringly.

"These radicals won't be satisfied until the ESUN is dissolved, and the world once again descend into war." Minister of Finance glanced at the Council Clerk, she wanted this on the record. "Your meeting with them legitimized these petty complaints, now every little backwater country will threaten to secede when they don't get their way!"

The Minister of Defence raised a hand to impose order, "We should focus on suppressing extreme separatist views from the public discourse and restore peace."

"We can't just ignore the problems faced by these people." Relena still hoped to remind them who they were supposed to represent.

"The same people who committed terror attacks on your tour?" Davos said with mock confusion, "Wake up lady, you're too gullible."

"No, Mister President, you're the one who needs to wake up and look at the situation on the ground. If we don't address legitimate concerns people will have to seek alternative ways to express their dissent, more violent ways." Last chance, Relena was willing to allow them one more insult.

"That was a very thinly veiled threat, Former Queen, you've made it plain which side you're on."

"I'm on the side of the people, always."

"The wrong people, Your Majesty." The President tried and failed to mask his pleasure from goading her, "Since all of humanity has been unified under one nation, I wonder if we still need a Vice _Foreign_ Minister..."

Picking up on the theme, the Finance Minister interjected, "Indeed, Miss Darlian, your office receives a handsome budget every year that could be used to aid the most impoverished regions."

They were trying to force her to resign, Relena took a calm deep breath, this meant she was a threat they desperately wanted to neutralize. She would make them work for it.

"It's precisely this attitude that alienated these nations," Relena stood up. "You see them as helpless failures in need of assistance, but they would much rather be productive members of the Union."

"You held a secret meeting to conspire with rogue states against the ESUN, but in light of your prior contributions to the Union, we will show leniency." Davos licked his lips, these next words were to be savoured, "You are dismissed from your office, Relena Darlian."

* * *

.

Heero regarded her with sidelong glances, unaccustomed to Relena's position in the front passenger seat. The armored van they used for transport was a two-seater, its cargo area outfitted for storing cash and other valuables. When she asked him where they were headed, he simply answered "Somewhere safe." There were dark shadows under her eyes, her leg shook with nervous energy. Freed from the responsibilities of ministership, she was entering uncharted space, it felt oddly familiar.

"The smaller countries fear the loss of autonomy," She tucked her bangs under a black baseball cap embroidered with the logo of a private security company, "And the nations most ravaged by the war feel bullied to abandon their traditional cultures in exchange for aid and loans from the ESUN."

"The Colonies are losing patience as well, it might boil over if the media continue to piss them off." He actually looked the part as a bank security guard, Relena tugged her ponytail through the Velcro straps of the cap, self conscious about her disguise.

She only sat silent for a couple of kilometers, "Have you thought about what we discussed last night?"

"Yeah...You'll have the first report by tonight." He tapped his finger on the steering wheel in agitation, "The net is not a friendly place for discourse."

"I'm used to dealing with hostile environments, sticks and stones may break my bones..."

"But words will bring about a revolution."

* * *

.

Tbc...


	5. Expendable Proxies

_The year is after Colony 203, with the breakdown of diplomatic relations between the ESUN and a number of its member states, now labeled as dissident states, the once promising world-government is increasingly becoming a symbol of global domination and control. The dismissals of the Preventers and Vice Foreign Minister Darlian in quick succession signaled to many the end of an era, public approval of the ESUN plunged to an all-time low in the weeks that followed. While tensions between the ESUN and the Colonies remain high, a peculiar account of the covert Operation Meteor appeared on the sub-web network, capturing the popular imagination._

* * *

.

"Our destiny is to achieve a secure, prosperous future for all humankind." President Ernst Davos spoke into the camera, stately and somber, "Those who advocate for separation stand in the way of progress, we must recognize the magnitude of the threat they present."

It was rare for the President of the ESUN to address the press directly, such occasions were reserved for international emergencies and times of crisis. Davos felt certain this was just such a time. "The sleeping pro-Union majority must awaken and mobilize to defend the values and hopes on which the ESUN was founded."

* * *

.

"This _New Mobile Report_ is getting out of hand— gossip rags, talk shows, even local news picked it up as a novelty item." State Minister Yacovitch jogged to keep up with the President, "People are sympathetic toward the Colonies again."

"Dynamic silence is the best treatment of such drivel." Davos maintained his stride. "Don't acknowledge it."

"But Sir, the Blue Helmets we've mobilized for this operation-"

"They can be kept busy here on Earth," Davos pivoted them both and spoke so closely she could smell the mint on his breath, "We'll be justified to send our forces wherever we wish... Watch the Unification rally tomorrow, it'll be quite the show."

Long after Davos had gone, Yacovitch stood rooted to the floor, the proximity of a man in power gave her a rush like nothing else, and she wanted more.

* * *

.

Dorothy browsed through her gold-cased tablet, reclining on the love seat in her guest suite courtesy of the Winner family. Her calculated whisper in the ears of a few editors tipped off several well known gossip sites, their publication of the _New Mobile Report_ generated millions of clicks for the e-magazines.

She was especially pleased with the illustrations that accompanied some of the serialized editions. Images of the young soldier and his princess was sure to set many hearts aflutter, and there was plenty of action to appeal to the more masculine minded. Already, network media churned out hours of criticism and speculation in an attempt to discredit the story, but only served as free publicity.

The title left something to be desired, but concessions had to be made when working with a stubborn guy like Yuy, she was impressed Relena managed to coax this much out of him. In any case, Dorothy had to admit calling the online memoir a report lent an air of seriousness to the improbable tale, especially considering what the final installment revealed last night.

A knock sounded at the door to her suite, it was still early afternoon on MO-VI, and Quatre was scheduled for a meeting with the colony workers union representative. Dorothy slipped off her perch and checked the hallway camera. She unlocked the door and was immediately enveloped in a hug around her middle, a blur of ginger hair tucked under her chin.

"Hello, little bird," Dorothy couldn't help the quirk of her lips as she returned the embrace, "What news do you bring?"

Mariemaia stepped back from her cousin and straightened her starched dress shirt, which had bunched up under a waistcoat, the girl really shouldn't take sartorial queues from Quatre. "There's a nasty rumour of mass layoffs making the rounds amongst the men."

Dorothy narrowed her eyes, "No wonder the labour rep wants a meeting so urgently, how pervasive is this rumour and who is the source?"

"We can rule out new hires, they don't have the social cred to be believed." Mariemaia rocked on her heels, "A majority of the miners and maintenance staff transferred from other Winner Corps projects, all good men."

Dorothy was about to speak when a mechanical tone shot out from the communications console in her writing desk, signalling a plant-wide announcement. The cousins looked at each other and Mariemaia shook her head with a shrug.

"Attention all hands," Quatre's voice boomed over the system, "Please assemble in the docking bay for an emergency company meeting at sixteen hundred hours, those who are on shift—"

They heard the sickening sound of an energy weapon, followed by a scuffle and a crash. The line went silent.

Dorothy bolted for the door, down the hall and descended the longest three flights of stairs of her life. A couple of security guards were already entering the meeting room with weapons raised, more men came rushing toward the scene, and Dorothy had to squeeze through them to get into the room.

One guard restrained a man she presumed was the attacker, his right arm hung limp at an unnatural angle. She realized with a start that it was the workers representative. The other guard was helping Quatre stand, an ugly burn branded the Winner heir's forearm, though there was little blood. He saw her looking and smiled reassuringly, but on his ashen, sweat-coated face, it was more a grimace. She heard someone in the crowd call for medic.

With his good hand, Quatre switched on the communications control, announced that he was unharmed, and ordered the crew to resume regular duties—the gathering crowd outside his office was already a safety concern.

"Hamza, your family has been with mine for generations," Quatre addressed his attacker, "Why have you done this?"

The man sat cross-legged on the floor, hands bound back, expression growing more wretched as he spoke, "They have my son, Mister Winner, my only son. They promised he'll live if I give them what they demand."

"And they demand my death?"

Instead of answering, Hamza looked away.

"There's a spy on site isn't there? Your handler?" Dorothy knew how these operations were run, "Who is it?"

Hamza shook his grey head, "My boy's good as dead, now."

"When was he taken?" Quatre could see the man was losing the last shred of hope.

"Eleven days ago, my wife called, she..." Hamza swallowed. Dorothy almost felt sorry for him.

Quatre scanned the room until he found Mariemaia by the door, their eyes met and she nodded at him, disappearing into the hallway. Quatre hissed through his teeth and clutched at his arm, the guard and Dorothy both reached out to steady him.

"I'm fine," He said, though the tendons of his neck were taunt with strain, "The mining drill cauterizes as it cuts."

Dorothy glared at Quatre for his pathetic attempt to be comforting, "If he killed you, I would gut him myself." She glanced over at the bound man, "Slowly, with a dull blade."

"My adrenaline is wearing off," Quatre leaned on her and breathed raggedly, his forehead felt slick and cold against her shoulder, "Infirmary, please."

Dorothy looked back at the guards and Hamza, the man seemed to sink into himself, "Lock him up for questioning later."

* * *

.

"Did you pick up the capacitors, love?" Duo's voice was muffled behind his welding helmet, when there was no response, he raised the tinted visor, "Hilde?"

The woman in question was absentmindedly putting away groceries in their little kitchenette, eyes glued to her handheld. "Mmhmm..."

Duo sighed, pulling off his heavy leather gloves, he left the workbench to stand by the kitchen island and waited to be noticed.

"Your goodies are in the bottom of the bag," Hilde whirled by and pecked the only clean spot on his face, "Now let me alone, I need to catch up with the forum."

"Heero's posts? I can't believe so many people obsess over his reports, it's gotta be more boring than a technical manual."

Hilde blinked and looked up from her screen, "Not at all. The bit about the crowning of Queen Relena is pretty exciting, and the part where Heero decides to not kill her..." Her eyes glazed over dreamily, "It's super romantic."

"What? How's that romantic? You women are craaazy." Duo whirled a finger at his temple.

"You don't get it. There's so much tension and yearning and the world just keeps them apart, oh it's like a fairytale."

Unnerved by Hilde's uncharacteristic swooning, Duo made a grab at her phone.

"No!" Hilde chased him around the kitchen counter, "Don't read it out loud."

Duo laughed and pitched his voice into a feminine falsetto, hopping in circles to keep the device above the reach of his squealing pursuer. " _As Relena's speech to the heretofore unreceptive aristocracy came to an end, a familiar silhouette appeared in the darkest balcony_."

"Shut up!"

" _At last, he'd come to set her free from these shackles of gold_." Duo clutched at imaginary pearls and made a kissy face.

Hilde grappled at his arm until she finally pried the phone from him, "Now your stupid voice is gonna get stuck in my head when I read."

"Babe, there ain't no way Heero wrote that."

"Obviously," She swatted at him halfheartedly, "Relena added the juicy bits."

"I have so many ideas for making fun of him right now."

"Don't you dare," Hilde emphasized each word with a poke in his chest, "Heero sacrificed his privacy for the good of the Colonies."

Duo cringed at the thought, "Yeah, not to mention his dignity, can't say I envy the guy."

* * *

.

Relena gazed out the window of their speeding jeep, the scenery took on a gloomier mood since they were last on the roads. Bare pollarded stumps of the trees that lined the high way stood starkly in contrast against overcast skies.

Since her expulsion from the ESUN, the two of them hunkered down for more than a week and focused on writing what Heero insisted was a "report," judging by the overwhelming reactions from both print and digital media, they succeeded in turning public opinion in favour of the Gundam pilots. This wasn't the first time she leveraged her notoriety, and it probably wouldn't be the last.

Heero waited until she finished editing the final chapter, offered a warm can of soup, sat down beside her and monotoned, "We found Zechs."

Relena nearly choked, maybe Heero was finally making good on his promise to kill her. Death by soup. She hurriedly swallowed the mouthful as gracefully as she could, "Where?"

"The Sanc Kingdom."

She wondered if Milliardo would be glad to see her, or if Noin was with him, but most of all, she wondered why her brother chose now to return to their fallen homeland.

* * *

.

The trouble with local anesthesia, Quatre observed, was the loss of motor control in that limb. He touched the numb, pink skin around the bandaged area, fascinated by the smoothness of the inflamed flesh.

"You should've listened to Trowa and kept up your combat training." Dorothy appeared through the curtains around his bed, the nurse had finally evicted the flocks of concerned workers from the infirmary and left the two of them alone.

Quatre feigned a hurt look, "I disarmed him and popped his shoulder, I didn't exactly lose."

"You're just lucky he only had a laser drill," she straightened his collar absentmindedly, "What if he came at you with a projectile weapon?"

"Hamza is a miner, there're no projectile tools in his kit." He could see Dorothy was skeptical.

"Pretty unprepared for an assassination attempt."

Quatre frowned, "He went through the trouble to spread rumours of layoffs, it must've been an opportunistic hit, he's desperate."

"But if he didn't plan to kill you..." She wrinkled her nose in thought.

The room quaked with a distant boom, equipments beeped their displeasure and the medicine cabinets rattled like crates of liquor. Quatre motioned for Dorothy to stay put while he flipped open his handheld.

"What's the situation?" His lips pressed tight as he listened, "I'll be right down."

"Are we under attack?" Dorothy asked.

"No, Hamza escaped in your shuttle."

The control room of MO-VI was packed with workers fresh off their shift, still coated in sweat and rock dust. The curious onlookers parted a path for their boss and his lady-friend.

"Was anyone hurt?" Quatre put a hand on the shoulder of the guard manning the aerial control console, who shook his head, "Good. Patch me through to the shuttle."

"I'm sorry, Quatre," Hamza appeared on the large wall display, in the cockpit of the civilian shuttle, he took the helmet off his normal suit, face shiny from perspiration.

"Return to dock, Hamza, that's an order."

The man smiled grimly, "This is for my son, who I will not meet again in Paradise. Let your anger and curses be on me alone."

"He's headed for the comm. satellite!" Dorothy pointed at the telemetry screens.

"Hamza, don't be a coward," Quatre's voice shook with unexpected rage, "What kind of a father abandons his son?"

The transmission was cut, the control room filled with quiet gasps as men watched the shuttle ram into the satellite. It crumpled like a frail metal bird as the nose of the shuttle plowed into its body, a small, soundless explosion enveloped the cockpit, then all was silent.

* * *

.

"Oh don't look so grumpy," Sally was clearly enjoying the discomfort of her friend, "The sweater vest suits you."

"We've been to six different protests now, if we come away empty handed today, I'm quitting." Wufei fumed quietly, it wouldn't do to draw attention to themselves in the streets.

Sally put on a girlish whine, "Aww, but who will fight the big bad separatists for me?"

The Place du Luxembourg was devoid of its usual dinner crowd of professionals and ESUN bureaucrats, instead the boutique shops and cafes were filled with friendly demonstrators, thirsty from bouts of sing-alongs to L'Internationale or some other folksy classic. On the outdoor stage set up for the presidential appearance, street musicians in shabby clothes took turns leading the crowd on their guitars, enjoying their moment of fame.

The square began to fill up in earnest as buses dropped off one group after another, and by five PM the square was filled with people waving the ESUN flag and displaying other Unionist paraphernalia's. Blending in had been easy, the slogans and chants were predictable enough that Sally could rattle off a dozen in her sleep.

Drones dotted the sky, taking aerial footage of the scene, Sally and Wufei kept their heads down and scanned the crowd. Une's orders were to gather evidence of suspicious funding, and identify leaders.

As the sun dipped below the skyline, Wufei checked his watch. "Ten minutes till the President is scheduled to speak, and these people are clueless as to who even organized this thing." He adjusted his flat cap with great annoyance.

"Say," Sally whispered into Wufei's ear, "Do those look like normal transit buses to you?"

Wufei squinted at the identical coaches parked along the one-way side streets surrounding the square, "Chartered for sure, and we're penned in."

"And there's scant police presence for a gathering of this size." Sally commented as she watched yet another bus pull up, thirty or so pudgy cheeked pre-teens poured out onto the street, some kids bounced with carnivalesque excitement, others rubbed their eyes and yawned from their nap on the bus. Two women who appeared to be the adult supervisors did a headcount and corralled the children toward the mass of people.

"They brought kids to this mess?" Wufei cursed as a commotion on the other side of the square caught his attention. Half a dozen security agents climbed onto the outdoor stage, followed by a wave of cheers from the crowd, the president himself appeared and waved at the people.

"Thank you for coming out to stand up for peace!" Davos launched his speech amidst much applause, he pitched his voice to address the back of the crowd, "I commend our young friends for participating in this meaningful event, we adults should all learn from your courage."

The children shouted happily from being acknowledged, hopping up and down with the energy of popcorn kernels. At the nudging of their chaperones they unfurled a long banner that made Wufei roll his eyes, it read: Peace through Unity and Love, and was decorated with colourful hand prints.

"These little ones are the future we fight for, we owe it to them to create a world without any conflict." The president laid his palm on his chest, pontificating with passion.

More drones buzzed around the square, each with the logo of a media company displayed on the casing, some have enabled flash photography as night descended. One flew so close to Sally she felt the breeze from its propellers.

"We cannot afford to be selfish, the spectre of a dark age hides behind the petulant desire for so-called independence." Davos continued, but Wufei was no longer paying attention, instead he tracked the movement of one unmarked drone that was doing figure eights above them.

Sally followed her partner's gaze and spotted the mechanical buzzard and its peculiar flight pattern, it wasn't equipped with photography lenses, yet the way it listed as it turned suggested a heavy load. It unceremoniously landed somewhere behind the row of young kids.

Instinctively, Sally stepped toward the children, she heard Wufei gasp behind her and felt him take hold of her elbow, tugging her back. The blast still took her by surprise despite her premonition, hot shockwaves knocked her off her feet and she collided into Wufei before they hit the ground together. Pain exploded in her right ear, thick smoke pushed into her lungs. All manners of debris clattered around them, and it was a long heartbeat before the hot wind stopped, somewhere in her mind Sally registered that she didn't hear her own coughing. She filed that fact away to worry about later, right now she needed to assess casualty and help the injured.

Legs shaking, Sally stood and walked forward, the ground tilted and rushed at her. Wufei caught her and attempted to drag her away from the scene, but as the smoke cleared she saw the carnage the explosion had wrought. She'd seen mangled corpses in the war, but these bodies were so small. She wanted to hurl. Sally tried again to reach for where the centre of the blast had been, perhaps some were still alive, even if she could only help save one...

Wufei dominated her field of vision and shook his head vigorously, mouth moving in silence. He gave up and fireman-carried her away from the site of the explosion, into the panicked throngs of a sweaty stampede.

* * *

.

Tbc...


	6. Into the Fire

_Oh judgement, thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason._

 _-W. Shakespeare, 15th Century English Playwright._

* * *

.

"I'm not getting any signal." Relena frowned when her secure mobile blipped an error code.

Heero quirked a brow at her from the driver seat, "Check mine." He handed his unit to her.

Relena slid the identical device open and was greeted by the same bleeps, an alert popped up on the screen, "Trowa sent you a message an hour ago."

"Read it to me."

"'False flag, blackout, invasions.'" Relena's eyes widened, "The Luxembourg bombing?"

Heero swerved the car off the dark road, into an abandoned petro station, "Communication blackout is only possible if the satellites are disabled."

"Quatre?" Relena's breath caught with worry for the safety of their friend.

Heero shook his head, "Trowa would've said something." he positioned the car behind the unlit old pumps to hide the dash light and turned on the radio, dialling from one station to the next. After flipping through an eerie amount of white noise, they heard a faint melody through the static.

"This is a local broadcast," Heero adjusted the radio to get a clearer sound, an old military march flowed from the speakers, "What is that?"

"That," Relena's expression turned grim, "Is the Battle Hymn of the Sanc Kingdom."

"Zechs."

Relena nodded, eyes downcast. For all her pretty rhetoric, she was powerless to stop the coming tide of war.

Heero tipped her chin up and turned her face toward him with a calloused finger, "You know what I have to do."

"If there's any other way..."

"I can't protect you with my bare hands, Relena." He held her with a steady gaze, "This is a battle I have to fight."

She pulled back, unwilling to accept his pledge, "I don't want you to."

"It's not up to you," His harsh, clipped tone reminded her of when they'd first met, "I'll not see your kingdom destroyed again."

The contact of his lips startled her for only a moment, she grasped the back of his neck, committing to memory the feel of his bristly hair against her fingertips. He was always kissing her goodbye.

"Return to me soon." Relena released his neck to fist her hands in the thick material of his forest green parka, fighting with herself to let him go. He slipped out of the car, she watched him until he disappeared into the dark, and clutched the warm metal he pressed into her hands moments before.

Though it was a short drive to the southern boarder of New Port City, Relena was thankful when the makeshift checkpoint came into view. She couldn't remember the last time she drove a car by herself and was woefully rusty.

Under the glaring floodlight that marked out the barricade, she counted three soldiers in what appeared to be old OZ uniforms, two were shouldering rifles, the third waved a flashlight signalling her to stop.

As Relena slowed the car, the flashlight bearer approached her driver side door, she recognized him in an instant. The other two soldiers followed behind, weapons raised. Relena stepped out of the vehicle, hands up in surrender.

"Hello, Simeon."

Simeon smiled with genuine gladness and bowed deeply, a hand on his heart, "Allow me to escort you to the Prince, Your Highness."

* * *

.

Mariemaia tried to hide her yawn, she propped her cheeks on folded hands, face lit by only the light of the vidcom. "I dug into the new recruits records all night, and still didn't find anyone suspicious."

"Twenty six hours without sleep is a bit long for someone your age, Marie'." Une wrinckled her forehead at her daughter, "I appreciate your work ethic though."

"Something else is bothering me," Mariemaia rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hand, "How did they know Hamza could be leveraged?"

"A third pawn...an informer?" Une said distractedly as movement in the dim room behind Mariemaia caught her eye, she feigned an unhurried smile and tapped a finger twice on her chin to signal a warning to her daughter.

Mariemaia froze for a fraction of a second, then sprung up and picked up her chair in one smooth motion, "No sense in hiding now."

The intruder stepped out of the shadows, he towered over Mariemaia, who held the chair to her chest as a shield. He smirked coldly, "Khushrenada."

"You knew my father?" Mariemaia inched sideways along the edge of the desk, silently vowing to never sit with her back to a door ever again.

The man shook his head and spit in disgust, "That devil and his witch in OZ murdered my sister, when they 'liberated' my homeland from Alliance rule."

Bribes wouldn't work on personal vengeance, Mariemaia shifted gears, "Was she serving in the Alliance?"

"She was just a clerk!" He grabbed the leg of her chair and yanked it toward him, Mariemaia let go and used the time to dash for the door. The chair hit the wall with a clatter and she was snatched off the floor by her neck.

Clawing at the meaty hands around her neck, Mariemaia began to lose her vision, she could hear Une's panicked voice coming through the vidcom, it sounded miles away and fading fast.

Suddenly she could breath again, and as Mariemaia gulped air into her lungs, her senses came back gradually like water saturating a cloth. She was sprawled on the floor, the lights in her room had been turned on and someone was cradling her head.

"Marie'," Quatre's furrowed brow betrayed his worry, his good hand examined her neck for damage. Mariemaia twisted away from him and sat up, she looked back at where her attacker had been standing. Strange, Mariemaia didn't hear a gunshot. Recalling a combat lesson, she realized she must've experienced auditory exclusion.

The big man lay crumpled on his side, black-red blood oozed from under him. He was wearing a mechanic's coveralls, identifying him as one of the dock workers. Dorothy stood over him, gun still trained at his head.

"...brood of war-mongering blue bloods..." The man said as he bled bubbles from his throat, he wasn't going to make it, "Hell would be a mercy on your blackened souls..."

* * *

.

"But sir, no one has yet to claim responsibility." State Minister Yacovitch set down the forensic report, "How can we be certain it was the separatists?"

The Defence Minister cleared her throat, "Our Intelligence clearly establishes the source of the bomb," she spoke evenly, "We don't need a confession."

President Davos nodded approvingly, "Now we must respond to this heinous attack, and neutralize all terrorist states."

"But from which country did the terrorist originate?" Yacovitch inquired further, she wiped sweat from her palms on her pant suit under the table. It wasn't smart to question authority in a time of crisis, but the lack of transparency gnawed at her.

"It doesn't matter," The Defence Minister said, "They're a network of many dissident states, their goal is to destroy the work of the ESUN."

"Minister Yacovitch, Rhoda," Davos used her given name, he's never done that before, "I understand that you pride yourself in being detail oriented, and I appreciate that quality in your work," the President straightened in his seat, "But we must respond decisively and swiftly to such a flagrant threat to our peace efforts."

Yacovitch nodded, ashamed at her own short-sightedness; what was this small incongruity in the grand scheme of things? If they were to liberate backward nations from superstitious medieval traditions, no, to deliver the masses into the enlightened new world, the ESUN couldn't afford to hesitate.

* * *

.

Une watched the two people who have, despite her best efforts at maintaining a professional distance, become her closest friends.

Wufei's permanant scowl softened at Sally. The injured woman sat in a cot, her back propped up by several bedrolls, swatting away his fussy hands. Her head inclined toward him at a peculiar angle whenever he spoke, trying to catch his words with her undamaged ear.

Lady Une sat across from them in the small sleeping quarters of their hideout, the sight of the two made her ache for something impossible for herself. Was she strong enough to live up to the legacy of Treize? She had come so close to losing his daughter today... Was she worthy of this burden?

"Really now," Sally spoke louder than her usual voice, overcompensating for her ruptured eardrum, "I'm the doctor here."

Wufei sucked on his teeth impatiently, "Today you're just a stubborn woman with head trauma."

"Settle down, Trowa delivered the brief for tomorrow's ESUN press conference." Une waggled her tablet.

"Speaking of, that blasted clown told us to join the protest," Wufei cracked his knuckles, "Where is the circus freak anyway?"

"Charming his way into the Defence Department of the ESUN by now, no doubt," Une answered with an unconcerned tone, "Oh, and Agent Chang, I'd appreciate it if you never address your colleague disrespectfully again."

"Yes Sir, sorry Sir," Wufei sat in the chair nearest the cot and picked up his tablet, plugging in a data cable. Sally pretended to not notice the exchange and read on her own device.

The room wasn't silent for long. Wufei scrunched up his face in increments as he read through the brief, disbelief and cold anger radiated off him. He waited for Sally to finish and she looked up at him with matching incredulity.

"How could they have traced down the perpetrators in such a short time?" Sally shuddered as the gruesome scene from a few hours prior rushed back at her like bile.

"They didn't, no one's been arrested." Wufei said, and rubbed Sally's back comfortingly, though he affectied an expression of long suffering.

"Trowa traced the remote control signal on that drone to an apartment over the west side of Luxembourg square," Une informed them, "The nest was abandoned by the time he got there."

"So, they hired someone competent this time."

Sally looked sharply at her partner, "Are you insinuating that the same organization was behind the Moldova attacks, too?"

"All the attacks which so conveniently give the ESUN an excuse to mobilize its army?" Wufei crossed his arms, "Call me paranoid, but yes I think so."

"As one of the orchestrators of the New Edwards massacre and the subsequent world-wide military takeover, no, you are not paranoid." Une broke in, "My real worry is this list of countries alleged to support the attack."

Wufei nodded, "They've included the Sanc Kingdom."

"That's ridiculous, there's not even a central government in Sanc." Sally tried to get up, but stopped when dizziness overcame her, "Relena's headed there isn't she?"

"With Zechs in New Port, I've no doubt that's where she's headed," Une said with concern, "But Heero and Relena have been radio silent for over two hours."

"It's already shut down?" Wufei rubbed his thigh in agitation, eyes focused on a faraway memory, "They always cut the telecommunications first..."

* * *

.

Noin straightened her imperial guard uniform, she watched Simeon lead the Princess through the main hall of the former Sanc Kingdom Institute, drawing gasps and stares from the other soldiers gathered about their business, several called out "Queen Relena" with hushed reverence. Noin cringed inwardly at Simeon's decision to put Relena on display, but morale was markedly improved and she couldn't say it was entirely the wrong decision.

Relena glanced around at their admiring faces but didn't acknowledge the whispers, her pace quickened when she spotted Noin at the end of the hall.

"Why are all these soldiers here?" Relena overtook Simeon as they drew near, "Where is my brother?"

Noin bowed formally before the Princess, "Please allow me to brief you on the situation, Your Highness." She turned into the passage between the main hall and the old administrations office, trusting Relena to heel.

In the dusty old office, Noin's shoulders relaxed as she shut the heavy oak door, letting her soldierly mask drop, and to her relief, Relena seemed to sense this. The two women embraced for a long moment, Noin found it difficult to speak past the lump in her throat.

"Not a day went by that we didn't think about you," Noin finally croaked out, she cleared her throat.

Relena withdrew and looked at the other woman somberly, "What do you mean by raising this army? It's against all the teachings of the Sanc Kingdom."

"You've done well with the publication of Heero's war memoir, it drained support for an all out invasion of the Colonies." Noin chuckled without mirth, "But the Sanc Kingdom is a small nation amongst powerful pro-ESUN superstates, who won't hesitate to swallow us whole."

"Armaments cannot pave the path to peace."

"That may be, but peace at the point of the sword is no peace at all." Noin gestured to the ceremonial blade on her belt, "And Sanc is far from the only nation with separatist intentions."

"Those men looked like they were preparing for a siege," Relena was skeptical, "How long do you expect to hold out against the ESUN forces?"

"Even if we are defeated, the world will realize the Sanc Kingdom is no easy target."

"You are willing to sacrifice lives to make a grand stand?" Relena recoiled and stepped back from Noin, eyes round in disbelief.

"No, Sanc has a history of surrender and humiliation, we are going to change that." Noin stood tall, trying to help Relena come to terms with Milliardo's intentions before the inevitable clash of the Peacecraft heirs. "Soldiers of tomorrow will be proud of their forefathers who fought to preserve their heritage."

"People of the future will look back and see fools who fought a doomed rebellion." Relena has firm convictions, Noin didn't expect less, but it still pained her to watch the girl she thought of as a sister work against Milliardo.

"I think you'll understand, Miss Relena, that I cannot allow you to wander around our camp," Noin placed herself between Relena and the door, "Please use this time to rest, I'll inform the Prince of your arrival."

Noin shut the door and locked it from the outside, good God, the girl hasn't changed one bit, she's as stubborn as her teen years. Shaking her head with a sad smile, Noin headed to the courtyard where Milliardo was due to arrive after an evening spent recruiting. That stubbornness and steadfast spirit was what she loved most about Zechs, how can she fault Relena for being true to the Peacecraft blood?

* * *

.

Heero navigated through the icy dark tunnels by memory, shivering. His thick jacket and gloves were not near enough protection against the antarctic freeze. In the total absence of light, the hands he put out in front of him felt oddly disembodied, he clapped them together to reorient himself every half minute.

The hatch was closer than Heero expected, he must have underestimated his growth spurt since he was last down here. After punching in the code, the hatch opened with a hiss to reveal the familiar cockpit he still saw in his dreams.

"Hello, old friend," Heero hopped in, readjusted the controls to his new stature, fingers flying on keypads to initiate launch sequence by muscle memory. The screens around him lit up in response as drives and motors whirled to life, "Lend me your wings one more time."

Snow at the surface broke in pieces as the giant awoke, its armor shone silver and white like the icy world that entombed it. Heero checked his performance stats, all systems functioning, he changed the mobile suit into flight mode and lifted off into the nautical twilight. Dread and exhilaration filled Heero's body as the machine climbed into high altitude, he clutched the controls tighter, it was going to be a long flight back to the Sanc Kingdom.

* * *

.

Tbc...


	7. Fateful Lightning

_War is just when it is necessary; arms are permissible when there is no hope except in arms._

 _-N. Machiavelli, 15th Century Italian Political Philosopher._

* * *

.

Milliardo pulled the refurbished military truck in to the courtyard of the old Sanc Kingdom Institute, with the final round of volunteers in tow. Noin ran up to salute him as the engine puttered to a stop, "The last of the civilians have evacuated to the mountains," she reported, "Fortifications on the central streets are complete."

Battle would descend upon his beloved city once again, but this time they would not take the knee. Noin quivered anxiously next to him, almost imperceptible were they not standing so close. She leant in and whispered in his ear, ah, his sister had finally arrived. Milliardo gave orders to assign the new men, and headed into the building with Noin.

Milliardo strode ahead of Noin, who having spoken to Relena an hour prior, felt it prudent to warn him, "She'll not be persuaded of our purpose."

"I'm not going to convince her of the righteousness of our actions, but only to offer her a choice," Milliardo paused to regard his faithful companion, "Though I fear it's all too certain what she will choose."

* * *

.

"Lead the militia? Impossible," Relena was horrified at the notion, "Our father's legacy of total pacifism cannot be reconciled with taking up arms."

"Our father is dead, his ideals doomed his own children to exile. Our people need us to lead them in a defensive battle." Milliardo was calm, but his words sent shockwaves through Relena.

"The Sanc Kingdom cannot take part in battles!"

Milliardo was quiet for a moment, marveling at the naïveté of his only remaining kin. Simeon shifted awkwardly from one foot to another, wishing he was anywhere else. Noin sent him in as a familiar face to ease tensions between the siblings, it didn't work. At length, Milliardo spoke again in a more paternal tone.

"Do you know why we were born, little sister?" He uncrossed his arms and approached the window Relena was seated in, "We were born to bear the burden of stewardship. We are not free to do as we wish, our blood carries with it the responsibilities of sovereigns."

"The world has progressed beyond the need for monarchs, kings and nobles are a thing of the past."

"To be replaced by whom? Politicians? War profiteers?"

Relena looked up at him unfazed, "My responsibility now is to reunite the nations in peace."

"The unification of all mankind is but a dream, Relena, an empire by any other name." Milliardo looked out the window at the courtyard below, busy with activity in the weak light of dawn, "When presented with such absolute power, there's not a man or woman born who can withstand so great a temptation for corruption."

"You think so little of humanity," Relena said, following his gaze, she could barely make out the movements of soldiers.

"No, I think humanity has great potential for good, but also an equal potential for evil. Can you really say the ESUN is exempt from this?"

Relena couldn't answer, it was true the ESUN was corrupt to the core. Could any system relying on corruptible human beings ever hope to bring peace?

Milliardo lowered his voice, "Sister, do you despise your birthright?"

"My birthright?" Relena was startled by his turn of phrase, "The people lived without our rule for over two decades."

"We waited twenty-one years," Simeon blushed at his outburst but forged on, "My grandfather left his own family to serve you until he died, yet you never even intended to return?"

"...Pagan was your grandfather?" Relena studied his face in a new light, parsing out features reminiscent of the reserved old man who had been her caretaker since infancy.

"We have utterly failed to protect our subjects," Milliardo put a hand on Simeon's shoulder, "Without her monarch, there is no kingdom, and our people are lost sheep."

"And that justifies a violent rebellion?"

"We are defending our homeland," Milliardo's patience was wearing thin, they didn't have much time, "What do you think is going to happen to our people when the ESUN dissolves?"

Relena had not given much thought to the future of her nation, if she still had any claim to it. The chaos wrought by a total collapse of the pan-national union would trigger a land-grab by predatory superstates. Small, peaceful nations such as the Sanc Kingdom will be carved up and annexed as provinces of other countries. Then there's always the lurking danger of colonization should the kingdom lack a coherent government. Though it was also possible that national boarders would simply default back to pre-Alliance boundaries, which were still functionally recognized by trade guilds.

"War is not a guaranteed outcome," Relena said, she refused to give in to despair.

"Neither is peace, pacifism is a luxury of the privileged few who are strong enough that no one dares attack them," Milliardo said, "We are far too weak."

Relena turned to Simeon, "You'd fight and be killed and deprive your children of a parent?"

"If I can't protect my children, what good is it to stay alive?" Simeon stood tall and resolute, the lion insignia on his old OZ uniform glistened in the dim light, "There are things worse than death."

Relena rose from the window ledge, her body cast a long shadow on the dusty carpet as the Eastern horizon grew brighter. "I cannot lead this nation in its current aspirations, however neither can I condemn the will of the people. I only regret not understanding your hearts sooner."

* * *

.

Trowa rubbed his fatigued eyes and took a swig of coffee, which had gone cold and tasted like ash water. He scanned the network centre he was assigned to, the lights were dim in the facility and every terminal was manned by a new recruit, each busily sifting through the millions of threads on the web. Their unit's objective was to scour both public and private forums for any anti-ESUN sentiment, identify the source and pass the report on to the enforcement agency.

The Cyber Spyders unit, Trowa was unimpressed by the lame title, was stuffed into the old Preventers HQ, as if to deliberately erase the memories of its previous occupants.

Trowa surpassed the daily quota two hours into his shift, from there it was easy to keep his head down while browsing internal communications of the ESUN. A cache of detailed minutes from the meticulous clerk's account was Trowa's reward, he delved in.

Rumours of a Gundam sighting was confirmed early morning, seven aircraft carriers were deployed from five different countries to neutralize the threat. So Heero did complete his pet project, Trowa mused, some days he missed Heavyarms, too. How would a Gundam fair against un-armoured combatants? He shuddered to think of the moral injury the pilot would suffer from such an asymmetrical battle.

With the Gundam delayed, would Heero make it back to the Sanc Kingdom in time? They were pulling significant numbers from Bavarian police forces to quell Zechs' rebellion. That particular German state did not even remotely border the target, why not draw manpower from somewhere closer?

Zechs was in Sanc, Trowa's breath caught in a thought. Bavaria was a former Alliance stronghold, the local police forces would jump at the chance to strike down the man who humiliated them as a commander in OZ. There must be an observant tactician inside the ESUN Peace and Safety council, or someone from the Romefeller Foundation was involved intimately with this operation.

Trowa's scalp tingled with goosebumps, Romefeller never let a tragedy go to waste, even so, the timing of the Brussels protest bombing was too convenient to be coincidental. The bodies of the dead children weren't even cold yet, they were already used as an excuse for conquest. This unification was to be built on innocent blood.

* * *

.

 _"Today we mourn for the senseless loss of thirty precious young souls, but we must not be paralyzed by grief. The unspeakable evil attack last night was a declaration of war against the Earth Sphere Unified Nation, and against humanity._

 _"We must turn sorrow into strength and strike down these terrorist states in a swift and decisive victory. For this reason, I ordered the total shut down of communications in terrorist controlled territories, and the extremist infested network forums will no longer be allowed to be the breeding ground for more acts of violence._

 _"Peacekeepers have been deployed by the ESUN Council of Peace and Safety, we will restore order around the world._

 _"What's more, the Colonies are now allied with the radical extremists, as evidenced by the appearance of a Gundam over the South Atlantic this morning. But our brave Naval Peacekeepers destroyed the Gundam in an intense battle at four hundred hours universal time._

 _"I repeat, the Gundam has been destroyed. There is no point in fighting, I appeal to all dissidents to surrender peacefully."_

* * *

.

Noin observed Relena closely as the ESUN announcement played on the small comms. unit in the briefing room. After Davos' speech, footage of the confrontation between a lone Gundam and the fleet of aircraft carriers was played on loop, no doubt in an effort to demoralize the "dissident" nations. Why else would Davos go through the trouble of broadcasting during the blackout?

Noin had her suspicions about the authenticity of the footage, but the look on Relena's face confirmed at least the existence of the mobile suit. Antarctica...the boy must've taken advantage of the defunct OZ base to reconstruct the Gundam. Was Relena aware of what he had done?

Regardless, no one here believed the Gundam to be so easily defeated. Judging by the jeers of the soldiers, instead of being discouraged, the broadcast roused their fighting spirits. They all had faith that the Gundam would come to their aid.

As usual, Noin found herself staring at Zechs, no, this was Milliardo, dressed in his imperial guard coat. The "killer of his own men" they called him, it wasn't that Milliardo was reckless as a commander, on the contrary, Treize trusted his friend's ability enough to send him to unwinnable battles, casualty was always high but the Lightning Count won each battle against impossible odds.

They were facing impossible odds now, a ragtag resistance force made up of retired soldiers and young volunteers. some of the boys were so green their voices were still changing, but Noin herself wasn't much older when she first enlisted with OZ.

"Sons of the Sanc Kingdom, my fellow soldiers," Milliardo addressed the assembled men at the front of the lecture hall turned makeshift command centre, Noin stood at attention beside him, "We fight not to conquer, but to protect, and faceless tyrants from faraway lands will not rule over us."

* * *

.

Relena watched the morning fog roll in from the bay, covering New Port under a thick veil. Around her in the foyer of the institute building, medics busied themselves with preparations to receive the wounded, nurses tried to disguise fear with professionalism to varying degrees of success.

Milliardo had insisted on her retreat to the safety of the mountains, but Noin understood her decision to stay. If Heero was alive, he would be coming back here. Relena also felt a deep sense of guilt for her long neglected people, who nevertheless remained fiercely loyal. She could not leave them. Her brother looked at her wordlessly for a moment before he left to lead the men out to battle, she was familiar with such a look, she'd seen it on Heero more than once, it was the gaze of a warrior silently saying farewell.

Was it right to take up arms for self defence? Wasn't that act alone a provocation? How easy it was to justify violence. No, Relena shook herself, Heero was not a violent man, his capacity for violence was wielded exclusively for her protection. And it wasn't as if direct, physical violence was the only way to harm others.

She has pursued total pacifism by universal disarmament and the unification of all nations. In the end this only resulted in the oppression of small countries by larger states via bureaucratic manipulation. Nothing changed the corrupt nature of human behaviour, it was only driven underground, and became subversive beneath a veneer of politeness.

A lone shot rang out in the empty streets, echoing off the abandoned buildings. Sharp shooters were taking down ESUN scout drones as the "Peacekeepers" waited at their boarders.

Heero had told her once that the battlefield was a lonely place, Relena now understood this wasn't always true. The men who marched out with her brother today exhibited extraordinary camaraderie, perhaps Heero felt isolated because he always fought on his own, never truly belonging with those he fought alongside.

The way his Gundam faced down the coalition naval fleet, barely a few pixels on the screen...Relena realized with a pang, he was still fighting all alone.

* * *

.

Tbc...


	8. Stalwart Sons

_Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn't even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back._

 _-Heraclitus, 500 B.C. Greek Philosopher (The Cynic Epistles)_

* * *

.

Simeon took three deep breaths to calm his nerves before pulling on his gas mask, his small battlegroup of grenadiers all did likewise. They hid in the attic of a building close to the edge of oldtown, where the roads were narrow enough to prevent armoured vehicles from entering.

Milliardo placed the fortifications at the mouths of these cobblestone streets, where the ESUN forces had to continue their sweep on foot. The power grid of New Port was disabled by malware, the ESUN's first step in laying siege to the city.

Glass and wood shattered downstairs, bringing Simeon back to reality, a few of his men swallowed audibly. Armoured police in ESUN uniforms searched house to house, kicking down doors and breaking windows methodically. By the time they got to this house, the police team began to feel a sense of routine, and entered the unlit building before their eyes adjusted to the darkness.

"Room clear!" The first Blue Helmet hollered, the others lowered their weapons and the point man at the door also entered the house.

Simeon gave the signal and his team unleashed their whole load, bright flashes of light followed by thick smoke filled the room. The victims below shouted in surprise and fired two rounds blindly into the wall plaster.

As the smoke dissipated, all five "Peacekeepers" lay sprawled on the ground, Simeon came down and checked each for a pulse. He nodded to his team and they began relieving the unmoving bodies of their rifles, magazines, flashbombs, radios, goggles, even their boots and socks.

The team quickly sorted the loot and after zip-tying the thumbs of the Blue Helmets behind their backs, leaned the bodies against each other, between which Simeon planted a white flag. He scoffed under his mask, Alliance tactics for urban warfare haven't advanced in decades. Looked like the same idiots were at the helm in the ESUN.

* * *

.

Quatre pressurized the airlock and unzipped his normal-suit at the neck, a thick film of black mineral dust clung to his visor with static electricity.

Asteroid mining was a meticulous enterprise, dangerous not only to the crew, but also the surrounding colonies and even the earth. To insure safe transit paths around the mining site and avoid alterations to the course of the asteroid's orbit, waste materials must be plugged back into the mine shafts, and any product removed must be replaced exactly by weight.

The pain in his injured arm subsided to a dull throb that came in sync with his pulse. Quatre gingerly pealed the suit off, the flesh there responded well to the hormone rub his sister administered, but still felt raw after hours of being wrapped in the non-breathable miners suit.

As he walked back to his living quarters, every muscle ached pleasantly from exertion. Quatre marveled at the positive effects of an honest day's labour on one's mood, which would have continued had he not found an intruder upon exiting the shower.

"Mariemaia!" Quatre hurriedly closed his bathrobe, "How'd you get in here?"

The offending girl sat in Quatre's favourite chair, flashed a keycard at him. The previous day's attack seemed to not have phased her.

Quatre tied the robe secure, "Did Trowa teach you to pickpocket?" He needed to have a talk with his quiet friend.

"Duo taught me, actually." She tucked away the card, "I swiped it from Dorothy."

At the mention of Mariemaia's cousin, Quatre unconsciously touched his cheek, the memory of her sound slap still stung. He plopped down on the ottoman and visibly deflated.

"So you two did fight then," Mariemaia surmised, "Is that why you hid for hours out there on the rig?"

"We're short a man since Hamza..." Quatre broke off and tried again, "They could use my help."

"Liar, we're ahead of production schedule by weeks, shipments are unaffected." Mariemaia crossed her arms in a painfully teenage manner, but her expression was brittle as one marred by grief, "You're hardly the only one to have lost a father in the war, you know."

Quatre looked at her with his forehead creased, feeling their age difference immensely, "Yours didn't throw his life away, now did he?"

"Wufei would argue otherwise, but no, he died honourably for his ideals," Mariemaia said with a hint of bitterness, "Though sometimes I do still wish he chose me over the battle and stayed alive."

That cut close, Quatre winced, "My own father was weak, he ran away from the fight even to his death." He ran away from even the chance of living on.

"I think you're wrong, he was a fighter in the end," Mariemaia said, "What would've happened if the resource satellite fell into the hands of OZ? He sacrificed himself because he had faith that you will succeed where he failed."

Quatre hunched lower, "That's a heavy burden to inherit, I'd rather he lived..."

Mariemaia sighed and stood poised to leave, "We don't get to pick our responsibilities in life, we only get the choice to fulfill or neglect the faith of our families. Are you your father's son?"

With that, she was gone, shaking her head at his despondency. If he wanted to wallow, this was the worst timing.

Left alone with his thoughts, her biting words rang in Quatre's ears. The hairs pricked up on his neck as he sensed another presence in the room.

"She's a tough girl..." A voice from the shadows said, "Lady Une did well raising her."

Quatre sat up and scowled, "Does no one respect a man's privacy anymore?"

Chuckling, Duo stepped into the light, "Come on Quatre, you know better than to be disappointed that your dad was a mortal man, made of blood and bone. Don't blame yourself for his short-comings."

"If I needed absolving it wouldn't be from _your_ God," Quatre said.

"Wow, congratulations on pissing off all your friends today," Duo stared down at him unimpressed.

"What do you want, Duo?" Quatre returned the stare with not a small amount of annoyance.

"Relax buddy, I'm here to make a business proposal. I hear your satellite investment just went bust."

Quatre rubbed his face with both palms in frustration, _bust_ was the mildest euphemism for _totally obliterated_.

"What do you say we use the colonies as carriers for the space antennas?" Duo leaned in conspiratorially, "That way any damage to the communications reflectors would mount to an attack on the colonies themselves. They wouldn't dare."

Quatre's expression grew increasingly amazed, he burst forth and clasped Duo by the shoulders, "Duo you're a genius! A brilliant, evil genius!"

* * *

.

Noin's index finger was stiff, she held it straight on the frame of her pistol beside the trigger, the way she taught all her students. She holstered the weapon and extended a scope over the concrete barricade, roughly two hundred meters of cobblestone road separated the defence force and the ESUN Blue Helmets, the two sides were at a stalemate.

The early morning raids by helicopter had ceased when the ESUN realized that the Sanc Kingdom had the means of shooting them down.

It was dead quiet now at midday, the sea fog had thoroughly evaporated. Noin crouched back down and took stock of her unit. Half her platoon were seasoned soldiers from the Specials, Sanc men who followed Milliardo into OZ. The other half was made of inexperienced volunteers, she had barely a week to train them in the simple firing sequence of breath, relax, aim, sight, squeeze.

They weren't at a disadvantage, Milliardo arranged the fortifications around the highest ground in old town, where the rooftops cascaded down in height with the hills, and concrete barriers in narrow streets funnelled the enemy into an easily defendable key position. That was where Noin was stationed.

The sounds of scuffing boots drew her attention, a few of her men noticed as well and peeked over the barricade. Two shots ripped across the top of their heads and they ducked in a hurry with muttered curses.

"It's just one guy makin' a run for it, Sir," One of the men who took a look reported, "All by his own self there."

Noin checked her scope again, a lone Blue Helmet was booking it across the street, he almost reached the halfway point when a shot from beside her fired with a deafening crack. The Blue Helmet dropped to the ground.

"I got him, Lieutenant Noin!" The man trembled as he looked at her with wild eyes, he was one of the freshly trained volunteers.

Noin put a steady hand on his shaky arm, "Well done, now breath." She needed to send a medical team to retrieve the downed enemy combatant, hopefully the wound wasn't fatal.

"More are coming!"

Beside her Noin heard the semiautomatic let loose another round. She whipped around to see four ESUN officers emerge from their rally point across the divide, but on their heads wore the white helmets of field medics.

"Hold your fire," Noin hissed, "They're medics."

"And those guys behind them?"

Three Blue Helmets followed closely with the medics, accompanied by a fourth man with an outdated video camera on his shoulder, cumbersome and hard to miss. Human shields, Noin sucked in a breath, Milliardo didn't account for such shameless treachery. Shooting down a drone is no cause for war, shooting a journalist or a medic however...

Noin debated on the next course of action as the mass of enemy soldiers moved closer, erecting ballistic shields around the downed man in a phalanx formation. Behind them, more ESUN Blue Helmets filed out to join the advance guards.

"We can't shoot at the combatants without seemingly aiming at the journalist and the medics," Noin chewed on her lip, "And with the communication blackout they have the monopoly on narrative."

The medics transferred the body onto a stretcher, and to Noin's shock, carried him toward the Sanc line of defence, cameraman in tow. Noin realized their intentions and a thrill shot through her like lightning at the prospect of close-range combat.

"Prepare for melee!" Noin unsheathed her sword and drew her pistol. If the ESUN thugs wanted to make a theatre of war, she'd oblige.

No sooner had her men scrambled into position, the ESUN soldiers were upon them. The White Helmets hoisted up their stretcher, and the man who was just a moment ago feigning injuries leapt into the air and jumped over the barricade. Noin let her men behind take care of that one, as she focused on the enemy soldiers in front of her. Both the blue and white helmeted soldiers began attacking the first line of defence, it seemed they were no medics at all.

Noin thrust her sword into the first invading soldier and while her blade was still buried in flesh, fired two rounds into the next man. She pushed the bodies off the top of the barricade in time to engage two more soldiers.

With the Sanc Kingdom's first line of defence thus occupied, ESUN soldiers marched up hill en mass. One of Noin's men went down with a scream, she was about to turn to his aid when the enemy soldiers dog piled on her. The magazine empty, she punched a soldier in the throat with the butt of her pistol, brought her sword down through another man's shoulder joint, between the pads of armour.

A burning in her left side was all the warning she got, Noin hit the ground as her knee gave out. No big deal, she's been shot before. The White Helmet stood above her with his rifle trained at her chest, but he paused at the sound of distant bugles. Noin pushed the muzzle to one side and slashed up with her blade.

A hand gripped her ankle and dragged her bodily away from the enemy swarm, Noin lifted her head off the ground to avoid head trauma, and saw Milliardo throwing a gas canister into the enemy ranks. He pulled her behind a second line of barricades, and assessed her injuries.

"We lost the Eastern blocks," Milliardo shouted over the din of battle. Noin gasped but bit her lips when he pressed on her side to stop the bleeding. "This looks superficial," He gestured to the wound, "I'm relieving your platoon. Take command of Base."

Noin felt panic rise in her chest, she clutched at his lapels, "Let me stay by you."

Milliardo crouched as a barrage of bullets shot over their heads, he pushed her away, "Go, for my sake, and for the soldiers of tomorrow."

* * *

.

Relena dragged the last of the medical supplies into place and leaned against the stacked crates to catch her breath, their retreat under Noin's order was hasty but organized. She took in the expansive underground portion of the Sanc Kingdom Institute. The ceiling was high and dark, the light of the emergency lanterns along the floor couldn't reach it. This must be the mobile suit hangar where the Taurus's were stored during the war, along with Heero's Wing Gundam.

Relena marveled at how wilfully ignorant she always had been about the people she trusted most. Since the very beginning, while she preached the dream of total pacifism, everyone around her were risking their lives to protect her. What hypocrisy, Relena berated herself bitterly, she had no right to decry the possession of arms when her own survival depended on its continued use. She knew Heero rebuilt the Gundam, could feel it in her gut. What did he think of her puritanical notions about disarmament? How did the man who was a lethal weapon feel about his own abolition?

Pushing aside her jumbled thoughts, Relena busied herself with setting up cots for the infirmary. Down here the sounds of the fighting didn't penetrate at all, moans of the injured and quiet murmurs of the medics could be heard clearly in the cavernous facility. With the cots set up, Relena was restless again. She headed up the freight elevator with a handful of Noin's men for another supply run.

"You don't have to come with us, Princess," The wizened soldier beside her said gently, "It's not safe up there."

Relena smiled uneasily at his concern, "My brother is on the front line, Noin is with the rear guards," And Heero is missing, she added silently, "Please, I'll just be an extra set of hands."

The man nodded, "You stick close to me then," He turned to the others, "Grab any ammo, food, fuel and water, don't stray far, rendezvous in fifteen."

They stopped at the ground level and the heavy doors slid open, gunfire erupted on the other side. Relena was pushed against the wall behind the old soldier, she heard Noin's voice shouting commands. The elevator shook and sank lower as it filled up with soldiers, packed tightly man to man.

"Doors!" Noin finally got on while still providing cover fire.

The man next to the controls wrenched down the lever, the doors closed with a swoosh, and the elevator carriage descended deep underground. The hushed, trembling breaths of the men filled the confined space with nervous uncertainty, each trying desperately to control their adrenaline shakes, the smell of sweat made Relena almost choke.

"Listen up," Noin commanded in a calm and controlled tone, "Seal off the exits, make yourself useful, we're activating the Samson."

A couple of men nodded weakly, rattled from the firefight, Noin banged her fist on the wall panel above her head and shouted, "Do you hear me?!"

"Yessir!" Came the answer in unison as the soldiers jolted from their despondency. They dispersed with a renewed sense of purpose when the elevator opened underground.

Noin stayed behind to compose herself, it wouldn't do to appear weak in front of her troops. She was startled to find Relena in the opposite corner of the empty elevator, staring at her with confusion and that ever-present compassion. As Noin straightened, the girl approached and asked, "We've lost, haven't we?"

"They have the city, they won't take this base," Noin said, "We're dropping the building."

"But my brother's still out there."

"Zechs..." Noin swallowed, the words bitter on her tongue, "Milliardo was captured in the West Quarter."

Relena staggered back, "Captured?"

Noin stood stiffly, "I've assumed command of the Loyalist Militia," She saluted, "Unless you object, Your Highness."

Relena shook her head, numb to the words. Should she open negotiations with the ESUN for Milliardo's release? Was it even an option now that the ESUN has the upper hand?

Noin pushed a helmet into her hands, Relena looked up and saw the older woman strapping one on as well, "You'll need this." Noin told her as she held a small detonator and pressed the switch.

A siren wailed faintly overhead, the mournful sound came down the elevator shaft and through the open doors, Noin pushed the control panel and closed the thick steel plates, and there was silence in the hangar. "One minute to detonation, put on your helmet and take cover."

Relena fastened the straps around her chin and followed Noin, in the dim light of the LED lanterns, soldiers huddled around them, some clutching rosaries, some clenching empty fists, all waiting in silence.

The first muted blast took some of them by surprise, but subsequent detonations only sent slight tremors through the underground structure, trails of dust fell from the high ceiling. The explosions through layers of rocks and soil sounded a world away, Relena could only imagine the devastation above ground, walls and towers imploding by controlled demolition, sealing off the entrance to this haven of stone deep in the mountain.

When the quakes ceased, the men split up into shifts, a roster for guard duty was set up and the rest of them went to get what little sleep they could. Noin wordlessly slipped into the electrical room of the hangar, a lantern and a trauma kit in hand. Worried, Relena knocked on the door, "It's me."

"Come in," Noin sat on the floor, her coat and shirt unbuttoned, twisting her torso to wash out her wound. Relena closed the door and knelt beside the older woman, taking the squirt bottle and gauze pad from her hands, cleaned, disinfected, and dressed the bloody gash. Noin sighed when Relena finished patching her up, buttoned her shirt and said, "We'll get him back, I'll put a rescue team together on the morrow."

Noin was putting on a brave face, Relena knew, the woman's worry for her brother was magnitudes keener, yet she wore her soldier's mask doggedly.

The building shook with the sound of a distant boom, alarmed, Noin went to investigate. Relena stayed close behind Noin and whispered, "Are we under attack?"

Noin shook her head, "It wasn't a missile, no explosions after the impact." She looked around, squinting in the dim light. Far off towards one of the hidden exits, she heard uneven footfalls and a struggle. Noin pulled out her pistol and aimed in the direction of the sound.

"Don't shoot!" Simeon's strained voice echoed out in the dark, he shuffled closer to the lamps, carrying a limp body with an arm slung across his shoulders, "He needs help."

Noin hesitated, Simeon was on the first watch, but where did the wounded man come from? Just as Noin lowered her weapon, Relena dashed past her in a desperate sprint.

"Heero!"

* * *

.

Tbc...


	9. Bitter Waters

_Milliardo checked his pistol, empty. His company of a hundred dwindled to a handful of men hiding in the shadows of the narrow alley with him, too proud to surrender and too stubborn to die. None but the rifleman still had ammo._

 _All afternoon, they ran circles around the ESUN forces, but eventually succumbed to the superior firepower of the enemy. Milliardo looked up at the Sanc Kingdom Institute, it's distinct bell tower stood forebodingly bleak against the evening sky as early winter sunset cast the hills of New Port City into darkness, electricity and communications cut off by the ESUN. The hole in his right thigh stung and bled, even after he plugged and wrapped it tight._

 _"When this is over, I'm proposing," The men were chattering quietly to keep up morale._

 _Another man countered, "Yeah that's what you said in the last war." The group laughed._

 _"This girl's different, she don't fancy no trinkets, and never chew me out for my long trips away." The first man insisted, Milliardo tuned out of the conversation._

 _Had Noin made the retreat? He trusted her with his life, but it took another level of faith for her to abandon him as he ordered. Bullets wizzed past the townhouse corner behind which he hid, bricks chipped and pulverized into dust that hung in the air. Milliardo refocused himself, scanned the street and spotted a case of ammunition beside a fallen comrade._

 _Making eye contact with his only remaining rifleman, Milliardo nodded, threw his last flashbang toward the enemy lines and dove out into the street. The rifleman leaned out with a burst of cover fire. Ammo box in hand, Milliardo limped back to the alleyway half crouched. The men crowded around him, reloading their firearms._

 _They heard the electrical hum a split second before an armed drone rounded the corner and opened fire. Milliardo cursed as the rifleman fell to the ground with a bloody gurgle, he raised his pistol and shot two rounds at the abominable thing which zigzagged in the air. The drone ceased fire and hovered indecisively, Milliardo emptied his magazine into it, the bot dropped in a sparking heap of plastic and metal._

 _He looked at the wet, red ruin around him, almost black in the dim light, every one of his men was shot dead, good men. Feeling the familiar cold loneliness roll in his gut, Milliardo spit on the puttering wreck of a drone, and stomped to crush its memory chip. Judging by the speed and the way it hesitated from firing at him, that drone was an automated bot with facial recognition, someone wanted to capture him alive._

 _"Predictable," Milliardo muttered and inched toward the street corner, took out a scope from his jacket and squinted through the lens. He counted four, five, six battlegroups advancing up the hill in alternating formation, all equipped with night vision._

 _Picking up rifles from the dead bodies, Milliardo lined up the weapons for easy access, made sure they were all loaded, and pulled out a flare from his belt pouch. His chest constricted at the thought of Noin, the flare was their signal to abandon the city and collapse the base, cutting him off from all hope of reinforcements. If she could make it through the night with the remnant of their forces, his sacrifice would be more than worthwhile._

 _Milliardo shielded his eyes as the flare cartridge ignited with a crackle, burning red it shot into the skies above and ended in a white hot explosion that lit up the night. Milliardo smirked mirthlessly, that should overload the night vision tech, they'll be fire blind for a good while. With the crosshairs on the rifle and his naked eye, he picked off the two nearest battlegroups still fumbling with their goggles. The rest abandoned their positions and made hasty retreats behind buildings._

 _As poetic as it would be to die in his birthplace, alongside his countrymen, he was not one to throw his life away for a romantic notion, not when so many were relying on him. Milliardo wetted his throat with the last few drops in his flask, and resolved to surrender himself as soon as Noin drops the building._

 _In the distance down the hill, he heard mechanical thumpings not dissimilar to the footsteps of mobile suits, but these units were magnitudes lighter if his ears were to be believed. Bright beams with the appearance of headlights shone toward where Milliardo hid, the buildings bleached white under the harsh light._

 _Those were too short to be proper suits, and too heavy for normal police armour. Milliardo squinted at the black shapes on the horizon marching ever closer, one unit fell behind the formation and backlit the rest of its team._

 _Construction mechanoids no more than three metres tall, mounted with heavy artillery, Milliardo was almost flattered by the realization. So they mobilized the cavalry for him, well he wasn't going to make this easy for them, there was enough C4 in the ammo box to total a Leo._

 _Slinging a pair of rifles over one shoulder, he picked up the ammo box and made his way up hill through back alleys, hugging the shadows for cover. The cumbersome mechs followed predictably uphill to Milliardo's last known location, as they paused to clear the site, the explosives detonated with devastating force, Milliardo could feel the heat on his cheeks from half a kilometer away. He craned his neck to assess the damage, but was jolted forward by a sudden pressure on his back. Confused, he spun around to return fire, or rather, he tried to turn, but found his body oddly unresponsive._

 _Milliardo fell face down on the cobblestones, and felt more hits on his back, bullets, he realized belatedly. Strange, there wasn't much pain, and as the darkness closed in on his consciousness, a distant boom told him Noin had finally collapsed the Sanc Kingdom Institute._

* * *

.

Noin tilted her head to glance at the boy lying on the bunk next to her's, Relena finished fretting over him and had gone to do her rounds with the other wounded. They set up in the electrical room to give Noin and Relena some privacy from the other soldiers, and thought it prudent to house Heero in there as well.

Aside from the bruising on his ribs and a broken leg which had since been set, there weren't any detectable injuries on the Gundam pilot. The only word they got out of him was a gravelly "Sorry," before he completely shut down. The medic assured them it was only heatstroke and sheer exhaustion, with some sleep and water and the boy would be fine.

Heero's face was stubborn even in his sleep, much like Milliardo. What a curse it was to love such men, accepting every goodbye to be the last yet having to keep faith for their safe return.

Had she made the right call to obey Milliardo's order? Should she have waited longer for his retreat? Was he even still alive? She effectively left Milliardo and all the men who were with him for dead when she brought down the building last night. Noin squeezed her eyes shut and swallowed the saltiness of uncertainty and regret. Now was not the time to lose her wits, she needed to be a soldier, not a woman. It was her turn to sleep and she should get what little rest she could before the evacuation.

* * *

.

Mariemaia anxiously watched the shuttle dock, unsure why her stomach was in knots. It's been over twenty four hours since she was attacked, and by all accounts she handled herself with exemplary poise. Yet she counted the seconds as the shuttle depressurized, and when the hatch finally opened and she caught the first glimpse of Lady Une's warm chestnut hair, her throat seized up and all the hurt threatened to burst out.

Dorothy put a hand between Mariemaia's shoulder blades in an uncharacteristic gesture of familial support. Mariemaia stood glued to the spot and waited the whole time as Une disembarked, this was not the appropriate place for an emotional reunion with her mother, she knew, Lady Une was all business and Mariemaia would not disappoint. After a brief greeting of handshakes, the three of them headed to Quatre's office. Mariemaia updated her mother on the progress of the colony-based communications reflectors, not once did she mention the ugly event from the day before that almost took her life.

"The Colonies are fully committed to this," Quatre said as they settled around his desk, "We remember what it was like to be completely cut off from the world."

"You'll be directly violating the information embargo imposed by the ESUN," Une cautioned, "Are you fully prepared to accept the consequences?"

"They have no choice, once the ESUN is finished extinguishing the secessionist nations on earth, the Colonies will be its next target." Dorothy said, "It's less of a principled stance and more a matter of self preservation."

"Latvia is still holding strong, as are Estonia, Kosovës, and New South Yemen; Moldova is teetering but the invasion triggered a massive movement of ex-pats returning to the country, it will not collapse easily." Quatre continued his report on the conflict regions, then swallowed worriedly, "The status of the Sanc Kingdom is currently unknown."

The room fell into an apprehensive silence, Une asked, "Did Heero make it to New Port?"

"Trowa says the last sighting of the Gundam was when it crashed into the forest east of the city around twenty one hundred hours Greenwich, the ESUN is sending a decommissioning team there at noon tomorrow." Quatre said, "It's being guarded right now, no sign of the pilot."

"Thanks to Miss Relena and Heero's war memoir, a lot of the public sees the Gundam as a symbol of their romance," Dorothy remarked, "The enemy is desperate to paint us as terrorists."

"Then we should expedite the construction of the space antennas,"Une said, "The sooner we can restore telecommunications on earth, the less time the ESUN will have a monopoly on the media coverage of the conflicts."

Quatre smiled at that, "Duo's way ahead of you."

The meeting concluded, Une deposited her single item of luggage on the spare bed in Mariemaia's small apartment. Une turned to regard her daughter, tears threatened to overflow in the eyes of the girl and her little shoulders tensed up in an effort to hold in the sobs. Une put her arms around Mariemaia, who was almost as tall as herself now, but being tucked in the nook of her neck, Mariemaia seemed as small as the day they first met.

* * *

.

Milliardo awoke, that in itself was remarkable enough that he marveled for a moment before sitting up with a groan, back muscles screaming in protest. So they used shock studs instead of real bullets, inflicting injuries without breaking the skin. His hands and feet were bound in heavy magnetized cuffs, his uniform was stripped and replaced with a bright orange jumpsuit that chafed when he moved. His thigh was numbed with anesthetics, it felt like someone else's skin.

Cold air from the ceiling vent raised goosebumps on the back of his neck, Milliardo felt a chill on his scalp, and awkwardly touched his crudely sheered head with cuffed hands. The room was bare and the light was pacifyingly dim, walls a nondescript grey-beige that made him think he was staring into nothingness.

The door slid open with a quiet hiss, a woman in her late forties entered the room, tailed by a tall, silent guard with a sidearm clearly displayed on his belt. Milliardo gave no indication he recognized Trowa, and instead side-eyed the woman, trying to place her face. A private, or perhaps an officer in post-Treize OZ under Romefeller, youngest niece of the Count of Lyon, always insecure.

"Milliardo Peacecraft, or should I say, Zechs Marquis?" The woman sniffed at him down her nose, "You've been charged with Crimes against Humanity by the ESUN High Court."

A dramatic show trial at prime time to convince the populace of the ESUN's legitimacy, Milliardo could not allow the Peacecraft name to be dragged through such a circus.

"You've done well for yourself, for an ankle biter," Milliardo said lightly, "Kissed enough rings to climb into Davos' inner circle?"

She bristled, "As the Minister of Defence, I bow to no one. Unlike the blind leaders of the defeated OZ, the ESUN appreciates my talents."

Milliardo let her see his smirk, "Your talents were as useful as bowties are in battle."

"An attorney was assigned to represent you," The woman held in her anger, "Your rights as the accused has been upheld." She turned to leave.

"I'll be making my own defence." Milliardo was satisfied to see the woman stop dead in her tracks, "The public will be very interested in what I have to say about the current conflict...and about the sordid past of their ministers."

"The People aren't foolish enough to believe the words of a madman."

"Not all, enough will begin to doubt, and your fiat regime will come tumbling down when the numbers reach critical mass," Milliardo leaned back on the hard bed casually, "Judging by your dirty tactics, that time is desperately close."

"The world is at peace, and we at the ESUN are the guardians."

"A false peace, imposed by autocrats with imperial ambitions masquerading as public servants."

"You Peacecrafts are always a thorn in the side of world unification, refusing to fight in wartime, and now taking up arms during peacetime." The Defence Minister sneered and loomed over him, "You would damn your people to war?"

"The war came to us."

* * *

.

"Retreat into the mountains?" Heero squinted as he mentally mapped out the route, "But that'll give the ESUN an excuse to attack the civilians hiding there."

"This base will not hold forever, Noin says we have to evacuate before the exits are discovered." Relena said quietly, sitting distractingly close to him on the bunk, picking at the scratchy wool blanket laid over his legs.

"Zechs means to use guerrilla tactics then, but with my Gundam out there, useless..." Heero passed a hand through his itchy hair, greasy from days of neglect. They expected a resurgence in mobile suits, but so far the ESUN only deployed conventional weapons, to retaliate with the Gundam would seem like an overreaction on the Sanc Kingdom's part. "We can't afford to give the liars more fodder."

"We've not been able to get a message out to Lady Une, much less affect the public," Relena said, looking down at her lap.

"Don't despair, there's no time for it," He reached to tuck some hair behind her ear, knowing it comforted her.

"The selfish part of me wishes you never have to fight again," she turned introspective, and leaned into his hand.

Heero sighed, "I've decided to accept my role in life, will you respect my decision?"

Relena was silent, unwilling to concede but having no rebuttal. This point of contention came up often in their times together, with no obvious resolution.

A commotion outside the small room caught their attention and Relena stood up in time to see Simeon burst through the door, "Milliardo is..." He struggled to form words, "Come and see."

With one arm over Relena's shoulder, Heero hobbled out to the vast underground hangar, a scratchy radio signal echoed unintelligible in the cavernous space. It came from a corner of the hangar where soldiers crowded around a comm. unit. The men parted a path for Heero and Relena as they made their way to the console where Noin was listening intently.

 _"-eacekeepers liberated New Port City from violent extremists, the people celebrates the victory of the humanitarian war effort, and the brave ESUN Peacekeepers who risked their lives. But some have paid the ultimate price."_

"As if we haven't lost people!" A soldier shouted in anger, and was quickly hushed by another.

 _"The extremists indiscriminately attacked our medics, these despicable acts of brutality were committed under orders from a disgraced member of the Peacecraft family, Milliardo Peacecraft."_

A wave of indignation rolled through the huddled men, Noin quieted them with a sharp motion of the hand.

 _"Charged with crimes against humanity for his role in the death of more than thirty innocent children in Brussels, and for fomenting rebellions in various member states, Milliardo Peacecraft will be tried publicly in the High Court of the Earth Sphere Unified Nations today at four PM Greenwich Time, and we hope that after justice is served, the region can finally return to peace."_

Heero looked to Noin sharply, "It's a trap."

"I know, but I can't leave Milliardo at the mercy of Romefeller." Noin glanced around the group of soldiers who hung their breath on her decision, "We'll attempt an extraction."

"Who will lead the militia in your absence?" Relena asked.

Noin hesitated, the soldiers looked expectantly between the two women.

"I will." Heero said, "If you men will follow."

* * *

.

"I can't guarantee the food, but I swapped out the water for you," Trowa pushed the food tray through the slot in the cell door, and leaned against the doorframe, the hall now empty of other guards, he had a chance to converse. "They're gonna pin all this trouble on the Sanc Region, though you're far from the only insurrection."

Zechs grunted in acknowledgement, "I had reasons to believe a plot was hatched to drive out or eliminate the inhabitants of the Sanc Kingdom."

"The easy solution to problem regions is carving them up to be annexed by surrounding states, not a genocide."

"My people will never accept the legitimacy of bureaucratic rule, fealty to the Royal Family is in their blood."

Trowa hummed, "So to tame the territory they'll simply replace the population?"

"That is my understanding."

"It's easier to just kill you and Relena, no royalty, no monarchy."

Zechs scoffed, "And create a martyr? That's not to their advantage."

"Not the ESUN, I meant Romefeller. They're spooked about you speaking in court. You can't be allowed to air their dirt on public record."

"They'll think twice before killing me, or it'll be open season on Blue Bloods."

Trowa pushed himself off the wall, "Be careful."

* * *

.

Davos latched the heavy oak doors to his office, he picked up the comm. unit receiver, punched in the code, and hesitated. Perhaps there was still a role for the Peacecrafts in this theater, the brother was doomed, but Relena was such a pretty little thing.

Davos connected the call and licked his lips in anticipation, he would make the girl an irresistible offer, saving both Relena and her little nation.

"This is the President of the ESUN, Ernst Davos."

"We know who you are," the soldier on the other end of the line replied insolently, Davos suppressed his annoyance and insisted he talk to the Princess.

"Hello Mr. President," Relena appeared in the dark staticky screen, "I want to negotiate Milliardo's release."

Davos laughed inwardly. The girl was being naive, but perhaps this was to his advantage, "Miss Relena, do not ask the impossible of me. I can barely guarantee your own life, and that still contingent on your cooperation."

"You want us to surrender? What will happen to the men who defended their home town?"

"The terrorists will be tried in the ESUN high court, of course," Davos dismissed the silly notion, "But peace will return to the city and your position as ruler of the country will be reestablished."

Relena's brow furrowed, "You're proposing I betray my own people so I can be your puppet government?"

"Be reasonable, Relena, you're still a symbol of peace in the hearts of the public, imagine the lives you can save by supporting unification under the ESUN, like you once did for Romefeller." Davos prompted amicably.

"No," Relena shook her head, "I will not be used as the figurehead of a false peace again."

Davos sighed, "Do you really think a little backwater country like yours can stand on its own? That the powerhouses of the ESUN, Germany, France, and Russia, who paid for all of the expenses of this Union, will just let you leave without paying back what you owe?"

"What we owe?"

"The Sanc region has racked up quite the deficit, we gave you new roads, new housing, new infrastructure."

"The reconstruction funds from the ESUN were grants, not loans." Relena looked indignant, narrowing her eyes.

"There is no free lunch, Princess, do you think it's fair for the taxpayers of other countries to pay for all your expenses?"

"This is insanity. You sent men to kill and die for money!" She recoiled from the monitor.

"And many more will die still if you continue down the separatist path." Davos appealed to her compassion.

"And you'll be responsible for their deaths." Relena replied, and ended the transmission.

"Foolish girl," Davos spat at the black screen, his own dim reflection mocked him through the dark glass. He sneered at it and strode to the window of his office, overlooking the courtyard of the ring-shaped ESUN Headquarters, "By consent or by conquest, we will tame this country."

* * *

.

"Was that long enough?" Relena asked.

"We sent a message to the Colonies with time to spare." Simeon grinned at her, "I don't know how Agent Yuy knew Davos was gonna try to turn you, but I'm glad we were ready." He patted the patch gear.

"Davos has pride and appetite." Heero held up a heavy parka for her, "It just started snowing, we'll evacuate now."

* * *

.

Trowa sped down the alleys of Old Brussels, the suspension squealed on his motorbike as the tires bounced rigidly off the speed bumps. He traced a suspicious payout in the ESUN internal network, and found a neutralization order. A sniper had been called-in to terminate Zechs. Distracted by his haste, the Defence Minister cornered Trowa just as he tried to slip off duty unnoticed. It took all his discipline to refrain from accosting the woman as she ogled at him openly and made countless advances.

It was almost dusk when Trowa finally freed himself. The cold early winter air rushed against his helmet, freezing rain splattered his visor and the road was building up a layer of slush.

A man leapt in front of him, Trowa swerved and used the momentum from the bike to cushion his own landing. The motorbike slid on its side and the man jumped over it lightly, and punched Trowa straight in the gut.

"That was for Sally." Wufei stood in front of him in a rage, clothes and hair soaked through.

Trowa looked up grimacing, and wheezed, "I didn't know."

Wufei nodded, calming down, "Let's go save Zechs then, you're headed to the courthouse yes?" He righted the motorbike and hopped on, waiting for Trowa to climb on behind him.

As they approached the courthouse, a sizable media blockade came into view. News station vehicles and journalists crowded the long flights of stairs at the entrance of the building

"This is bad," Wufei stopped at the mouth of the alleyway overlooking the chaotic scene, "We can't get close and any of those buffoons could be a hitman."

"I caught wind of a sniper," Trowa swung his leg over and off the bike, "You keep an eye on things down here."

* * *

.

Noin crouched in the back service road across from the entrance to the courthouse, they were unsuccessful at intercepting the motorcade en-route. She motioned for the two soldiers with her to stay put, and scanned the crowd of reporters for anyone with a military bearing, ready to eliminate any threat to Milliardo. The motorcade of police cars preceded the white court service escort van, and cleared a path through the crowd, the van stopped and officers disembarked first.

"Our only chance now is to wait for the trial to finish, and extract him on his way out." She whispered, wiping away the rain dripping down her cheek. The two men nodded in acknowledgment.

The back door on the van opened and a guard dragged out Milliardo. Noin gasped at his appearance, head shaved bare, eyes hollow and leg limping. He still walked tall and regal as best he could, and maintained an expression of serenity. Noin rose to her feet, drawn toward him by an invisible tug.

Several things happened in that moment.

A black electric car appeared silently out from the underground garage of the courthouse, Noin saw a muzzle flash from the driver seat window before she heard the gunshot. Milliardo dropped to the ground, Noin stumbled, as if hit by the same bullet. Another shot rang out from overhead and the driver of the black car slumped on the steering wheel, the car blared a long horn.

The press mob scattered like flies, hiding behind the marble ledges of the front steps, cameras flashing intermittently. The guards took cover around the court vehicles, one of them dragged Milliardo with him, leaving a dark trail on the ground.

Noin ran out into the street, rain blurred her vision. A familiar figure blocked her path, she blinked and recognized Wufei with a start, and tried to go around him. Wufei wrestled her back into the service road, muttering in her ear , "He's gone, you can't help him."

* * *

.

tbc...


	10. The Wound and The Blessing

_And where are they? and where art thou,  
_ _My country? On thy voiceless shore  
_ _The heroic lay is tuneless now—  
_ _The heroic bosom beats no more!  
_ _And must thy lyre, so long divine,  
_ _Degenerate into hands like mine?_

 _-George Gordon Byron, 18th Century English Poet._

* * *

.

 _"The former White Fang leader known as Milliardo Peacecraft was assassinated yesterday prior to his public trial. Facing numerous charges of crimes against humanity, including the killing of thirty children by remote detonation, and the democide of almost three hundred civilians of the Former Sanc Kingdom, amongst whom is his own sister, the former Vice Foreign Minister, Relena Darlian. Now over to Jim on location at the Sanc Kingdom Institute."_

 _"Behind me construction mechs are hard at work excavating the ruins of the Former Sanc Kingdom Institute." Jim shouted into the microphone against the blistering wind, "The building was destroyed by explosions originating from the inside, trapping every terrorist under the rubble."_

 _"Thank you Jim, that harrowing footage was the devastation brought on by the brutal orders of none other than Milliardo Peacecraft. The rescue team is hoping against all hope that Relena Darlian is still alive somehow, somewhere in this carnage."_

* * *

.

Heero blinked against the snow on his eyelashes, even in a hard cast, pain shot up his broken shin with every step as they trudged uphill in the old growth forest. He adjusted the position of his crutch to allow blood circulation back into his arm. Wind howled through the black pines against a black sky, making the trees sway and creak in the dark.

The main of their formation carried the severely injured on stretchers, along with supplies of ammunition and medicine. At just under two hundred, they were quiet and efficient for their condition. There were advantages to this miserable weather, the snow covered their trail and confused heat sensors.

Heero had a cursory topographical knowledge of these mountains north of New Port City, but not enough to navigate it in heavy snowfall with almost no visibility. He let Simeon take the lead, the man knew these woods like his own body.

A chill spread across Heero's skin, he grit his teeth and suppressed a shudder. Behind him down the hill Relena cried out, the troop halted. Heero half ran and half slid back down the path to where she crouched in the snow. This would be a bad time for both of them to get hurt. Heero lowered himself gingerly, favouring his good leg, and checked Relena for injuries. She was hunched over and trembling, her breaths puffs of vapour. He raised her gently by her elbows, leaning in close.

"Milliardo... my brother is..." she whispered to him, eyes squeezed shut.

Heero glanced around discretely, the men had begun to murmur, dark shapes shifting in the pre-dawn dim. They needed to be on the move.

"Not now," Heero grunted lowly in her ear and tightened her hood, coaxing her to stand. He led Relena up to just behind the vanguard, and resumed his position beside Simeon, whose eyes saw much, but marched on in silence.

* * *

.

Sally touched her wrist to Noin's brow, her patient had been running a low fever all night. Sally cleaned and rewrapped the wound on the other woman's ribs, the superficial injury looked to be about two days old, but rain soaked through the old gauze and dissolved the scab into a bloody mess. In the pale light of the underground base, Noin's skin looked thin and fragile as rice paper, as if she could fade away at any moment.

Gently closing the door on her way out, Sally leaned against the wall in the hallway. The wrongness of the situation struck her in waves, anger welled up in her chest and quickened her breathing, she closed her burning eyes.

Sensing someone touch her shoulder, Sally swiped to trap the offending hand under one arm, her other hand came swiftly for a blow to her attacker's face. Wufei easily blocked her fist and waited for her to recognize him, offering an apologetic smile for startling her with her damaged ear. Sally calmed her breathing and swallowed the pulse in her throat, and slumped against Wufei.

"Zechs was no saint," Wufei said.

Sally looked at the closed door of the makeshift infirmary, pity swelled up for the woman lying inside, "But she loved him, none the less."

Wufei silently cursed the female empathetic nature, he changed the subject, "Trowa went back to the ESUN HQ, the two Sanc soldiers are sedated, their emotions were too high."

"We should help...do something, anything."

"The ESUN is in possession of Heero's Gundam."

Sally lifted up her eyes with spirit renewed, "Let's get that Gundam back."

* * *

.

Relena could no longer feel her face, her fingers and toes numb from the cold, her heart raw. She walked as if in a trance, following the path in the snow made by the men ahead. The west wind howled and shaped the snow into dunes and valleys, snow-laden clouds bleached the sunlight of its warmth.

They stopped at a thick stand of tall oaks, the terrain leveled from the steep uphill they've been climbing all night to a gentle plateau. Simeon alone went forward a few paces by a twisted tree, stuck an ungloved finger in his mouth and blew a series of bird calls into the frozen woods. The reply came just after a beat from beyond the forest, shrill long notes that cut through the dampened air.

Simeon signaled the rest of them to wait, and watched the narrow opening between two oaks. A hunched figure clad in heavy priestly robes soundlessly appeared, a grey head peaked out from under the black hood and looked about expectantly.

"Father Stephen!" Simeon whispered with urgency and ran out from his cover. He bowed low at the foot of the old priest, "Bless, Father."

Father Stephen made the Sign of the Cross quickly and let Simeon kiss his hand, but the old man's eyes searched the faces of the troops, and fixed on Relena. He hobbled toward her transfixed, "I am blessed to lay eyes on a Peacecraft heir before the Lord calls me home." He took her mitted hands in his own bare, wizen ones, shaking with emotion.

Relena repressed a surge of grief at the reminder of being the only surviving member of her family. Before she could respond, Heero's voice came cold and clear, "We shouldn't linger here."

"Yes, yes..." The old man muttered to himself and turned away, leading them through the thick hedge of oaks. As they entered past the hedge, the wind died down to a whisper, the steps of the men crunched in the quiet glade.

The oak-lined path opened up to a cemetery, bronze leaves on the trees lent the desolate scene an air of regality. At the far end of the rows of headstones stood a small chapel, pillars white as bones, no light shone in the ornate window slits. Beyond the chapel was a monastery, parts of the roof collapsed from disrepair.

Walking past the graves, some of the men crossed themselves, Relena bowed her head and shuffled along. The doors to the chapel were plated in black iron, and shone with a dull reflection as she stepped over the threshold. It was warm inside the long stone hall, icons adorned the walls, candles flickered under them, cushions placed here and there for prayers.

Relena joined Heero and Simeon, who conversed with the old priest whilst the rest of the men filed in.

"They're housed in the novice cells that are still usable, staying put until the all-clear," the priest was saying, "Warm and fed, all of them."

"What of the foreign citizens?" Simeon asked.

"The non-natives defected to the ESUN as instructed, they did not march here."

Heero nodded, "We must decide on a course of action from here. Simeon, set up a watch," He turned to the man, and softened, "Then go see your family."

"Sir!" Simeon saluted and was off.

The old priest, Father Stephen, addressed Relena, "Please come with me, Your Highness."

They stepped into an alcove at the very center of the far wall, behind the altar. Kingly figures were painted on each side, one with a sword, the other bearing the cross. Father Stephen removed a small stone floor tile, which gave him a handhold to lift a larger tile the size of a cellar door. It revealed a staircase, the old man descended down with a candle, Relena apprehensively followed after, with Heero trailing just behind her, the tap-tap of his crutch echoed down the stone steps.

"The Royal Family attended service here every year on All Saints," Father Stephen said, "The King would then visit his forefathers."

The bottom of the stairs opened to a walkway wide enough for two men to pass shoulder to shoulder, on either side were tombs carved into the rock, sealed with stone which bore the depiction of the royals entombed within. As they walked deeper in, the inscriptions became more crisp, less worn by time, until they stopped in front of the last pair of tombs.

Relena squinted at the inscriptions by the flickering light of the candle, but she knew what was engraved there without reading. Heero pressed a hand on the small of her back.

"The King and Queen, Your Highness," Father Stephen said reverently. Heero turned on his flashlight, and the priest shuffled back up the steps.

Relena traced the faces carved into the stone, her father's austere features, the kind eyes of her mother. She touched her own forehead to her mother's stone one, and turned toward the long hall of royal tombs. Here lay all she could call kin on earth, and soon her brother's bones will be gathered and laid to rest like all the others.

Heero stood mute behind her, his eyes steady and without judgement. A breeze ruffled Relena's hair, light poured in from the entrance of the mausoleum. Simeon closed the hatch and strode stiffly down the steps toward them, he stopped in front of Relena with an outstretched hand.

"Commander Milliardo entrusted me with this before the operation," Simeon indicated to the data chip in his palm, "It's for you."

Relena took the offering and examined it. Simeon saluted Heero and jogged away in a hurry, stoically holding the tears in his eyes. Relena glanced at Heero, "He knows?"

"It's not hard to guess, Noin should've sent word via shortwave by now," Heero said, "Your outburst back there didn't help either."

"Sorry..."

Heero shook his head and surreptitiously stroked her cheek before limping away to give her privacy.

Relena bit her lip and activated the data chip with her bio marker, pale light projected onto the stones of the sepulcher, her brother's face flickered like a ghost.

* * *

.

 _Dear Sister,_

 _We the children of the Peacecrafts were robbed of our heritage, as our nation was robbed of her sovereignty. You were too young, but I remember the Sanc Kingdom in all her glory. Mother singing by the seaside, the mountains where Father taught me to hunt, the old palace walls that still echo with the ghosts of old kings. Every moment of my exile I ached to return._

 _In our hubris, Treize and I sought to purge mankind of its will to fight, our pride cost hundreds of thousands of lives, and changed billions more for the worse. People will always be corruptible, there is no final solution to end all wars, t_ _he world wasn't ours to fix._

 _My hands are tainted with blood, I am not fit to rule as a Peacecraft; but you are not burdened with a vengeful spirit like mine, Relena. Your wish for peace is not wrong, but a king who loves his people must be able to defend them._

 _The Gundams fought because they loved the Colonies. You know better than most that the sheepdog looks much like a wolf, but for the lambs to lie down in green pastures without fear, the sheepdog must keep his fangs sharp. Let Heero help you protect those whom you love, my dear little sister, do not fault him for his soldier's heart._

 _The curse of a monarch is to watch others sacrifice themselves in your name. I am honoured to give my life for our kingdom, perhaps my death will reunite our people._

 _Farewell, Little Sister._

 _All my love,_

 _-Milliardo Peacecraft_

* * *

.

Relena slid to her knees as the projection faded.

"I failed you," She said quietly to the dry bones in the sepulchre, "I've abandoned our people, and now our nation will perish here."

The tomb was silent, expectations of long-dead kings hung in the air like thick smoke. Sightless stone faces patiently waited for the creature of flesh and blood to join them.

* * *

.

" _The remnant forces of the Sanc rebellion are still missing_ ," Trowa's voice crackled over the video comm., " _Wufei and Sally are headed that way._ "

"Weren't construction mechs sent to the region to excavate the Sanc Institute?" Quatre took off his welding helmet and shook his head, beads of sweat splattered the screen, he wiped at it with his sleeve.

" _The lack of bodies at the site is going to tip them off that the Sanc forces have escaped._ "

"So they'll have to abandon the narrative that the Peacecrafts buried their own people."

" _Not necessarily,_ " Trowa curbed his friend's optimism, " _The Sanc rebels are officially dead, the ESUN can't be held accountable for killing them twice._ "

Quatre ground his teeth, "The average citizen only sees what is shown on the ESUN controlled networks, good people operating on bad information."

" _Anti-ESUN demonstrations have appeared in almost all major cities of the supposed ESUN strongholds, don't underestimate your average citizen._ "

"I haven't seen any of this in the media, but I guess it goes against the narrative."

" _That's why we need eyes on the ground and broadcast capabilities,_ " Trowa steered the conversation back to business, "W _hen can the satellites come online?_ "

"Four hours till launch."

" _Don't wait too long, Quatre, this is war._ "

"How did a media coup against Ms. Relena morph into a campaign to quash discontent nations?"

" _Relena's death was supposed to justify the invasions of these regions, but their sacrificial lamb survived the slaughter, and it got messy._ "

Trowa's calm grated on Quatre, was his friend always so cold? "All those years, all the lives lost, haven't enough people died?"

" _Shape up, Quatre, a woman like Dorothy may be impressed by kindness at first, but a weak spirit will not satisfy her._ "

"Trowa!" Quatre blushed a shade of indignation.

Trowa laughed quietly but turned serious again, " _The fight came to us, we must finish it._ "

"Conflict is the air we breathe!" Duo proclaimed loudly over Quatre's shoulder and pointed at Trowa through the screen, "You've been waiting for a chance to play dress-up, don't deny it."

" _Duo,_ " Trowa eyed the other man from under his bangs, " _Get back to work._ "

* * *

.

Heero's chest ached with every breath, the pain in his leg pulsed as he walked down the steps into the Royal Catacombs, injuries he could've brushed off a few years ago. The step-scrape of his limping echoed off the walls as he approached Relena.

Deep inside the dark tunnel, she knelt by her father's tomb, hands folded in prayer, he regretted disturbing her. An irrational hatred of her brother boiled up in Heero. Zechs, how many times must she grieve for you?

Relena opened her eyes and looked up at him, "Do you think me foolish? To rely on an unseen God at a time like this?"

"I can't mock what I don't understand," Heero rested on his good leg and met her eyes.

Relena stroked the line of inscription on the tomb, "I don't have a right to lead these people."

"It's not a right, it's your duty."

"A small nation like us declaring independence will Balkanize the ESUN. Is it worth the death and suffering?"

"The Unified Nation is now a pretext for empire. Peace by tyranny is no peace at all."

"What can our meager hundreds do against that empire?" Relena smiled sadly, "Make a principled stand and die fighting?"

Heero struck the ground with his crutch, "If you make a stand, the world will follow."

Relena looked at Heero as if seeing him for the first time. He fought for the Colonies even when they betrayed him, his own life expendable for what he thought was right. "Heero, if the fighting ends tomorrow, where will you go?"

"The fighting will never end, but my place is with you."

Relena smiled in a way so familiar to him that he couldn't help but respond in kind, "Then my place is with my people."

Heero nodded, "In that case, you should know, this tunnel goes through the mountain to the other side."

"The other side?" Relena echoed with a start, "We can escape..."

"It is an option."

Relena stood and dusted the knees of her fatigues, "I need to speak to my people."

* * *

.

"What have those idiots done to you..." Wufei whispered grievously to the Gundam, almost forgetting to release the unconscious guard from his chokehold.

"Wufei! You'll kill him!" Sally said urgently, prying his arms loose around the poor ESUN soldier.

Wufei left Sally to set the limp body down in soft snow, and climbed up to the cockpit. Scorch marks and dents covered the rim of the hatch, but it remained firmly sealed.

"They couldn't open the cockpit so they just started stripping the outside panels." Sally followed after him.

"No respect for good craftsmanship," Wufei opened the hatch, hopped inside and checked the status, "Cooling system in the left arm is offline, but it's otherwise intact."

Noin struggled up the side and hoisted herself in front of the cockpit with a grunt, "Let me pilot it."

"No way," Sally helped the other woman up, "Not with your injuries."

Wufei locked eyes with Noin, he didn't like what he saw, "You think we'll just let you go fulfill your death wish?"

"I'm not ready to face Milliardo yet, besides," Noin's mouth twisted into a joyless grin, "You don't know the lay of the land here."

"I know it well enough." Wufei countered, "You're injured and compromised."

"Alright," Noin feigned to concede, "But you'll be leaving the rest of the mission to us two wounded women."

Sally looked from Noin to Wufei, and knew the woman won the argument. She clutched at her friend's thick coat sleeve, "Promise me, Noin, that you'll value your life and live through this."

* * *

.

Tbc...


End file.
